Beauty masked by darkness
by ConsumedHatred
Summary: When a prince and his soldier visits the poor parts of the kingdom, they stumble upon a fight to the death between 5. The man in the middle surrounded by three human hybrids comes across as the most beautiful man the prince has ever seen, as his orange hair clings to his blood soaked forehead. The prince interferes and so what will happen? AU, Yaoi, Violence, Sex etc.
1. Prince and soldier worker and helper

**Ch 1**

"Toshiro, make sure to keep her cooled down while I'm out shopping," Ichigo called to the silver haired man.

"Ichigo, I know how to take care of Yuzu. Now hurry out and get the next supply of medicine," he said shooing Ichigo out the door.

On a scrawny bed inside a worn down house laid a panting Yuzu who battled a never ending fever, her body soaked in sweat. Toshiro smiled sadly at the poor girl, before taking the cloth of her forehead soaking it in the not so clean water before putting it back on. Yuzu groaned and shivered before calming down again.

Ever since Isshin and Karin had been taken away to work at some nobleman's mansion he and Ichigo had a hard time caring for the ill little sister. Ichigo worked himself to exhaustion at a nearby farm only to get as little as 30 mon, which was barely enough for food and medicine. Toshiro hated their current situation, but truthfully he was glad for the life he had knowing it could have been much worse

* * *

Out in the street Ichigo walked the miserable streets of the densely populated neighborhood he had grown up in. On the dirty ground that was filled with dirt and various other things, people that fared worse sat begging for money. Ichigo had used to take pity on the people, even though his own situation wasn't that much better. He was lucky enough to have a decent enough house that was worth staying in, and he earned some money even though it was hardly enough. But over time Ichigo had become rather insensitive towards those poorer than him, he had been forced to learn that in this life it was each man for his own.

Ichigo finally reached the store he was aiming for, and entered the small shack that was the local drugstore. His nose wrinkled at the stench that lingered in the air, and he made haste to find the medicines he needed. Pulling a couple of different packages he went to the beaten up counter. He didn't even need to ask for the price, he just left a note with Kurosaki written on it and 15 mon.

The woman who owned the shack was rarely seen behind her counter, she trusted the people paying her store a visit to leave the right amount of money. All the medicines had price tags, and were sorted as nicely as possible on the ragged walls. This was routine for Ichigo, every second day he went to the drugstore to fill his supplies of medicine for his ill little sister, and the remaining money was used to feed him and his small family.

He sighed when he came outside again, the stench out there wasn't much better than the stench inside the drugstore. He turned to walk down towards his house once more, not noticing the commotion further up in the narrow street. Ichigo didn't notice the eyes that followed his thin frame from the dark of a side alley either, as he jogged lightly down the street.

* * *

Two men dressed in exquisite outfits sat mounted on beautiful white horses as they rode down the dirty streets of the poor. The people whispered and chattered among themselves as they cleared way for the pair that made their way down the street, their presence so strong that it was like the air itself moved from their path.

The one in front had a large build with broad shoulders, and sun tanned arms bragged about their muscles as he guided his mount down the street. Messy sky blue hair tied in a braid at the neck danced in the wind while cyan eyes took in the miserable and disgusting sight of the street. His black kimono decorated with blue embroideries that formed beautiful dragons danced a duet with his hair, as the strong legs of the white horse hit the ground step by step. Put simply the man was gorgeous, and his hair made his identity known to the bystanders.

Behind came his loyal guardian, his beauty no less striking although he didn't shine as much as his blue haired prince. Wavy brown hair that was parted at the middle, played with the wind as grey eyes with a blue tint watched the back of his master and close friend. His white kimono wasn't as striking as his masters, but it too was covered in beautiful embroideries that made it seem like he wore a garden of lotuses on his body. He had a leaner build, but his body along with the one belonging to the prince brought promise upon promise of strength. From time to time his head would go about searching the surroundings for danger, and at his left hip hung a katana worthy of a martial arts master.

The prince was blessed with an even more beautiful katana, sheathed in a scabbard of pure ivory. They were a stunning sight to the people as they made their way through the mass and further down the street. However not all people paid attention to the pair of royalty, in fact a certain orange haired boy and 4 assaulters were busy sizing each other up.

* * *

Ichigo looked at the four men that had surrounded him. He closed his eyes and concentrated for a second before opening them again. Their animal spirit was revealed to Ichigo's eyes and in front of him stood four well-built hyena hybrids, their large ears lying flat on their heads, while their short tails swung from side to side. All four mean revealed large sturdy canines as they bared their teeth at the heavily outnumbered Ichigo.

Ichigo was by no means a weak man, no the countless of hours out in the field made his body that of a sturdy worker. Though Ichigo was rather thin from having little to eat, that didn't stop his body from working up a fine set of muscles for the young Ichigo and so with confidence he bared his sharper and more elegant fangs at the hyenas.

"No use boy, give us all of your earnings and we'll let you go… After we've enjoyed the taste of your body of course," one of them snickered, his eyes glowing with lust.

Ichigo crouched, clenching the bag that contained the bread he had bought to his chest while he snarled against his offenders.

"Too bad," the largest one said as he lunged out for Ichigo.

Ichigo's keen eyes followed the movement and he dodged the blow before jumping into the air. With a growl he drove his feet into the back of the assailant, sending him face first into the dirt. Seconds after he felt a firm grip around his throat, and he growled.

"I've got you now," the hyena growled. Ichigo was smaller in build, but he sure as hell wasn't a coward and he possessed brains as well.

"Think again," he growled before biting down on the arm that kept him captive, while driving his elbow into the hyena's gut successfully making the man release him.

The hyena hybrids no longer bothered with hiding their ears and tails, and as the first one that went down got up again they attacked again. Ichigo groaned as two fists came flying into his gut, making him crouch to the ground with a hoarse sound coming from his mouth. He wheezed as he tried to collect himself and stand up.

Ichigo knew they weren't far from his home, and if he just managed to get himself free of the band he might just have a chance at escaping to lock himself up in his home. At least it would by him some time.

He yelped as he made a non-successful dodge resulting in the blunt claws of the hyena tearing through his shoulder. Ichigo snarled and leapt at the one that had shredded his shoulder with jaws wide open. The man with bloodied nails was stunned by his victim's quick recovery, and so he yowled in pain when those lethal feline canines sunk into his throat mercilessly cutting off his air supply. Ichigo was desperate at this point; desperate enough to let his love for battle take over his body. This evened out his odds for the time being, as he threw the dead hybrid to the side.

* * *

During the fight a crowd had gathered, several people cheering for the outnumbered youngster as they watched. Of course the commotion was noticed by the royals and they spurred their mounts into a trot as they headed for the gathering. When they came closer they heard loud snarls and yowls of pain that clearly indicated a battle was taking place. The prince scowled as he kicked his horse into a canter, his guard following close behind. When he made his mount slide to a stop with a nervous nicker, his cyan irises narrowed at the view shown to him.

From the back of their horses both royalties watched a blood painted patch of the street that was occupied by 4 combatants. Surrounded by three hyenas stood the most beautiful young man the prince had ever seen. Orange hair dyed crimson at various spots was plastered to the bloodied forehead of the outnumbered man that couldn't possibly be older than 20.

The prince quickly took in the amount of damage the young man had received, and what caught his eye the most was a completely shredded shoulder that was obviously caused by blunt canine claws. He then noticed the bundle of a hyena that laid way too silent in the outskirts of the battlefield, and he realized the skinny looking man had killed one of the hyenas.

He watched with awe stricken features at the next move that was made. The largest hyena came running and attempted to hit Ichigo, whom took the blow. The hyena grinned not realizing he had fallen for the clever man's trap. Ichigo snarled as he caught the arm still connected to his face and twisted it to the sickening sound of snapping a bone was heard.

As Ichigo released the man's arm as he fell a few steps back before roaring and flying in again. Agile as he was Ichigo jumped high and turned in midair, landing on the hyenas back with a snarl. In that moment Ichigo heard the voice of Toshiro calling his name through the crowd, and he froze in that instant. His eyes scanned the line of hybrids closely and he stiffened even more as a small white haired figure pushed through and into the circle.

"Toshiro, get the hell awa-" Ichigo shouted but was cut short by the hyena whom used the moment of surprise to shake Ichigo off of his shoulders. Ichigo gave a pained grunt as he was slammed into the ground and hissed when a large hand grabbed his throat.

"Ichigo!" Toshiro screamed as he made a futile attempt at knocking the larger hyena off of his beloved master.

"What the," the hyena said looking at the white haired man who's spirit was revealed. Large pointy ears of a caracal laid flat against silver hair as the small feline hissed at the hyena. A twisted grin appeared on the hyena's face as he barked an order.

* * *

Grimmjow watched with a deepening scowl as both of the other hyenas went for the caracal. Toshiro yowled in pain as blunt claws dug into his shoulders, and he desperately tried to fight back but it was no use.

"Maybe killing this cute little caracal will make you cooperate," the hyena pinning Ichigo laughed. Toshiro mewed in fear as large jaws came to a halt around his throat after he was pinned to the ground, and turquoise eyes grew large as tears threatened to stain his face.

The prince now found himself wondering what the man would do in this hopeless situation, but what the orangette did was not what the prince had imagined. His trained eyes watched as the deep brown eyes of the orangette lit up and turned golden, as he kicked at the hyenas abdomen roaring as best as he could. The hyena was overwhelmed by the sheer power of the kick and fell back with a pained grunt as the orangette got up on shaky feet.

"Ichigo!" the scared voice of the caracal called, and the orangettes head snapped in the direction of the silver hair. As soon as the orangette got a clear view of the caracal's situation, the whole air surrounding the battle changed.

Grimmjow watched in awe along with his guardian as it seemed like shadows clung to the orangette's face, completely golden eyes lighting up amidst them. The prince turned his attention to the silver hair when his brown haired companion pointed in that direction. The caracal seemed to be in a fit of panic, horror stricken eyes directed at the orangette. The hyenas watched as the aura surrounding the orangette changed completely. Both prince and guard flinched as the voice of the caracal sang.

"No Ichigo you must not give in, please calm yourself!"

The prince wondered what could have made the cat fear his friend more than the jaws around his neck and so he watched the orangette once more. It was then that he realized what the change in aura and those glowing golden eyes met. When he looked closely he could see faint tear lines appear in the orangettes face along with spots, and fangs showed their face between the orangette's closed lips.

His cyan eyes narrowed to mere dots as he jumped off his horse and barged through the crowd. Toshiro gasped as the blue haired man appeared behind Ichigo, catching him in a firm grip before he could do anything. Shiny white fangs sunk into Ichigo's neck and the orangette immediately went limp as the calming saliva of a stronger feline entered his veins.

Toshiro squeaked in surprise when the two hyenas holding him captive fell victim to the blade of the grey eyed man in the white kimono, freeing him. The hyena that had pinned Ichigo down took a few steps back as he realized just who it was that had interrupted their fight. With a whine he concealed his soul and tried to make a run for it, only to gag when he felt something cold enter his throat.

Looking down he saw a blade of metal going through his throat, and as his life faded he watched the brown haired man through hazy eyes before finally sliding off the blade dead. No sooner than the presence of the hyena's soul was gone, Ichigo returned to his senses. He took to his forehead as his nearly visible markings disappeared and fell to his knees.

A worried Toshiro quickly came to Ichigo's side to assure him he was ok. The orangette fell limply forward into the silver hairs embrace and proceeded to cling to the caracal. The orangette was completely silent as the crowd disappeared to let the four intimidating persons be. Turquoise eyes locked with cyan, as Toshiro looked at the prince over the orangette's shoulder.

"I thank you your majesty. Had you not interrupted when you did I am sure there would have been fare greater losses than that of these four bags of scum," Toshiro spoke in a formal manner.

"Don't mention it," a low husky and masculine voice answered, sending chills down the silver hair's spine.

Toshiro bowed his head in gratitude, before nudging Ichigo.

"Come now, let's go home," he said before dragging the still dazed Ichigo up to his feet. The orangette was shivering, as Toshiro located the bag of groceries and went to pick it up. Tying it to the rope around his ragged kimono he placed Ichigo's hand across his shoulder. He turned turquoise eyes at the prince once again and said "Once again, thank you. You saved him from carrying another heavy burden."

The prince wondered what that could mean as he watched the silvette drag the orangette with him down the street, disappearing into their shabby house moments later. He was fascinated by that man, and his brown haired companion gave a smile as he recognized the light in his master's eyes. The prince had found someone that lured him in, and so the brunette thought that what would happen next would have to be interesting.

* * *

**Heeyooo! New request story up and going XD This story was requested by GoldenKitty :D I hope you like this first chapter 0w0… I had to brainstorm for hours before I managed to drabble this XD I'm not sure as to what I should name it yet.. But the name as of now will most likely be temporary and might change in the future..**

**If you don't know what mon is, it is a small circular bronze coin that was part of the japanese currecny from the 16th to the 19th century.**

**Please review ;)**


	2. A life in danger

**Ch 2**

Toshiro's face was still flushed, the memory of Ichigo's magic hands on his body still fresh in his mind as he cleaned the small house. They had woken up earlier than usual, and Ichigo had found himself in the mood for some morning love. Toshiro had been caught in those warm arms, his body still tingling with the sensations those strong hands had left. The silvette shook his head trying to clear his mind of the slightly disturbing images, as his lean hands worked and swept the floor clean.

He cleaned the house every morning, keeping it clean was important for the little girl lying on the bed. She had barely eaten the past few days, and just moments ago Toshiro had managed to feed her a few slices of bread along with some cold water before she passed out again. He felt so sorry for the girl, his years of slavery seemed like nothing compared to the illness she was battling. The thought of his past as a slave made shivers run down his spine, and following those memories the gratefulness he had towards Ichigo welled up to the surface.

Toshiro had escaped from a cruel life as a slave, where his master had treated him like his personal pet and toy. The poor silvette had been forced to wear a collar and the most exquisite jewelry, alongside the fact that he was allowed nothing but a loincloth as his outfit. They made him drink a terrible drug that forced his animal soul to show all the time, which was a huge energy drain. Half dead each night his master had bound him roughly and abused the small feline's body till the silvette was no longer able to cry in pain.

Day in and day out it was the same, and Toshiro wanted nothing more than to drift into eternal sleep. Then one day, the mansion had been raided by local bandits. Seeing his opportunity the smart little kitten had put his brains to work, and had managed to sneak out of the mansion, escaping the grasp of both master and raider.

Early in the morning as it was, he could barely walk due to the nights 'normal' course of action. He had left a trail of blood that poured from between his legs, as he shuffled his feet along a small side road that was hardly used by publicity. Reaching what was obviously a farmer's property, the last thing he had seen was the lean figure of a young man working in a field.

The silver hair had fallen unconscious out of pure exhaustion, and said worker's keen ears had heard the dull thump. Without hesitation the young man, which he later knew to be Ichigo had taken the slave into his warm grasp and given him a home. In order to show his gratitude, he had made Ichigo his new master and he lived solely for his and his family's purpose.

He had been there when Ichigo's father and sister had been taken to work at some mansion, and he had seen the sorrow that marred the brown eyes of the orangette. He could feel the pain as his own, and over time he had come to know his master quite well, forming a unique bond that would be deemed inappropriate had they been of higher class. Steady and slow Ichigo had shown him that sexual intercourse could be an action leading to the most exquisite pleasure, but he would never be touched by anyone but his master.

Toshiro's lips quirked a sad smile as he continued to clean his home, his turquoise eyes faded when his light was no longer around.

* * *

Ichigo's skin was tarnished by the dirt belonging to the ground he was standing on, his sweat covered skin glistening in the warm sun. His mouth was dry as a piece of 100 year old wood, as his breath travelled slowly from his lungs and out in the air. His muscled arms raised the heavy scythe and swung it to cut the growths on the field, to be collected by his arms later.

His employer had spared him one single bottle of water, and the orangette did his utmost to ration his incredibly small water supply, taking one sip here and there. The heat was murderously strong, and Ichigo could feel his strength being drained little by little for every hour he worked. He was allowed no breaks and no food; he was only allowed to burn himself out completely.

His hair clung to his moistened forehead, as his tongue began to move back and forth in his mouth, his deepest instincts popping in due to the extreme heat. Putting the scythe down after having performed several of those energy draining swings, he panted heavily. He needed a break and knowing there was no way for his employer to catch him he collapsed to the ground.

His limbs stretched and his spine morphed, as his shoulders turned into elbows and his fingers to paws. A long and elegant body with the most sharply cut head rested on the ground, its beautiful golden fur shining in the rays of the sun. The feline was too tired to pick up the sound of heavy hooves hitting the hard dirt of the road, as its eyesight faded into just dull shapes.

However from the road, those knowing cyan eyes had caught sight of the unusual creature resting in the field. His mount was pulled to a stop as he waited to observe the cheetah. Cheetahs were considerably rare, their breed having been driven near extinction as other feline breeds sought out the heavily compatible spotted feline. Cheetahs had come to develop an extremely high chance of reproduction, and the female's wombs had been sought out by too many males. Finding a cheetah was rare, and females as that were even rarer. But still a male was considered a treasure, as it was rumored they could conceive due to some mutation in their genes.

The prince could tell the animal was exhausted as he watched its sides rise and fall rapidly and heavily. He had a hunch that made him feel like he should know the one lying in the field by a scythe, but he was stricken with surprise when the cheetah got up on shaky feet. The feline certainly was beautiful, and the prince felt his heart drop at how elegant the feline moved despite it being on the brink of total exhaustion.

Cyan eyes widened as the body of the feline morphed, and turned into that one orangette he had printed into his mind. The man was bare chested and the prince watched as he bent down to pick up the large scythe, the movement obviously causing him great pain in the wounds that remained from the battle 2 days ago. The royal one could not comprehend why the cheetah would want to work himself to the bone with such severe injuries inflicted on his body. The man was way too thin to be in good health, but his skinniness was covered up by the mass of muscles that crowned the orangette's body.

The prince had found the one he wanted, and so he stayed on the back of his mount watching as the man worked till sunset. The lean figure sat down on a scrawny box and his muscled arms reached for the water bottle. Turning it upside down completely, he allowed the final drops of water to moisten his dried out throat and he gave a loud purr at the soothing feeling.

The prince scowled as the man began walking in the direction he himself had originally been going. Surprisingly the prince lacked his companion, and so he was free to do whatever he wanted. Spurring his horse into a soft walk, he moved it so its feet would hit the grass dulling the sound of its movements. He rode behind the cheetah, and soon they arrived at a large farm.

The prince knew the cheetah had cared for the entire field alone, and the pay he was given for his hard work was so meek that the prince wanted to talk some words of 'wisdom' into the farmers head. 30 mon was way too low a salary for a severely injured man to receive after having done an entire patch of land completely alone. He hid in the shadow of some trees as the cheetah walked past the farmer's house, obviously heading for the city on shaky feet with the bronze coins tucked safely away in a pocket sewn into the ragged trousers he wore. He spurred his horse into a canter when the man finally collapsed at the meeting of two roads, his consciousness completely gone.

* * *

Ichigo groaned loudly and moved his arm to rest over his eyes. His body was sore all over and a pained grunt escaped his lips when the movement ripped through his shredded shoulder. The sound escaping from the orangette was caught by keen ears that were hugged by wavy brown hair, as the soldier got up to take a look at the man.

Ichigo rubbed his eyes and opened them only to find his vision blurry. He squinted his eyes as something covered for the light and he tried to make out who or what it was. But hold on a second, why was it light? Normally he would have woken to the dim lights of his little home, but here it seemed to be bright as a day. He furrowed his brows, his face returning to its usual scowl as he tried to wake up his dull senses.

His nose came by first, and the scent that lingered around him was definitely canine. Ichigo faintly remembered the battle he had with the hyenas, and for a moment he thought he had been captured by the same gang which resulted in his lips parting for a low threatening snarl. The shadow quickly disappeared and finally Ichigo's vision cleared.

He looked around and found himself to be looking at snow white traditional Japanese walls, which were decorated with intricate flower patterns. Now he knew he was not at his own home, and he instantly tilted his head backwards with a wrinkled nose as he sniffed the air. His irises shrank and flashed yellow a couple of times when he couldn't find the scent belonging to his little sister and his lover. If his animal soul wasn't restrained his ears would have been held half way down in a semi angry, semi scared emotion.

His next action was to locate the one, whom had shadowed his light moments ago, and the scent was still strong and he turned to his right. His brown eyes shrank in surprise at the man displayed to them. Sure the man was obviously canine, and Ichigo really despised canines, but god damn he looked good. A tall and lean frame with obvious muscles, shoulder long wavy brown hair and the most fantastic set of electric gray eyes. The man held a kind of lanky posture, and didn't seem to mind Ichigo staring as he just promptly yawned and fell down into a pile of cushions with a satisfied sigh. Ichigo raised an eyebrow before swinging his feet of the couch, standing up on shaky feet.

"You know, you really shouldn't be up and about. It'll be a pain in the ass for me if the prince finds you collapsed on the floor again," the smooth and warm voice sang from the mouth of the canine.

Ichigo flinched at the unexpected words of conversation from the silver eye and his lips quirked upwards on instinct.

"Now, now. I don't like having fangs shown at me please," the male said in a lazy attempt to calm Ichigo.

"Who are you and where am I?" Ichigo said with an underlying growl.

The brown male sighed and hid his face under an arm as he sank even deeper into the mountain of cushions.

"Name is Coyote Starrk, personal knight of his majesty Grimmjow the 2nd, pleasure to make your acquaintance," he said. "But just call me Starrk," he added on an afterthought.

"You didn't answer my question fully," Ichigo responded with an annoyed tone.

"Huh? Oh right…. You're at the royal mansion belonging to emperor Grimmjow, located on the top of Hogyoku hill," he said.

"Why exactly have I been brought here," Ichigo snarled his eyes filled to the brim with suspicion. Ichigo flinched as a low and husky voice responded him instead of the smooth and warm one belonging to the brown one.

"I believe I can answer that for you," the blue haired prince said eyeing the orangette with piercing cyan eyes. The man oozed of strength and Ichigo immediately backed off a few steps with a low snarl lingering in his throat.

"And who are you?" he said glaring at the incredibly good looking man.

"Prince Jaegerjaquez Grimmjow, soon to be emperor of Japan at your service, you may call me Grimmjow," he said. "I assume you want to know why you have been brought here yes?" he said with a teasing tone to his voice.

Ichigo deepened his scowl and glared daggers at the prince.

"Hoh? Such hostile eyes you have," he cooed resulting in fiercer daggers being glared at him.

"Once again, why am I here?" Ichigo snarled.

"I picked you up after you fainted alongside one of the country roads on your way home," Grimmjow said, crossing his arms and putting his weight on one leg making his black kimono fold in a beautiful way. Grimmjow noticed the change in his eyes, as Ichigo's tensed shoulders eased up a bit and he removed the crouch in his posture.

"Well then I am grateful, but could you please show me the way out so that I can get home?" He asked.

The sound of the orangette's voice was music to Grimmjow's ears, his firm and strong but yet mild voice was absolutely beautiful, what a lucky man he was.

"And how do you plan on getting home? You're in the city of Seiretei, there's no way you can make it back to Karakura town on your own," Grimmjow said.

"That doesn't matter…Wait, did you say Seiretei?" Ichigo halfway snarled back at the royalty. Grimmjow was struck dumbfounded at the expression of shock and fear that was painted upon the orangette's face, marring his beautiful features.

"Do you have any idea what you've done? She'll die at this rate; I need to get back home as soon as possible!" Ichigo cried out in a fit of panic as he kneeled on the floor, punching a hole through the wooden boards in the process.

Grimmjow watched as the figure of the man began trembling and shaking and drops of sweat began forming on his forehead. With concerned eyes he stepped forward and placed a gentle hand on the shaking frame of the orangette.

"What do you mean, who will die?" Ichigo shook the hand off of his shoulder and glared with completely golden eyes at the prince.

Grimmjow felt a moment of fear as those vicious carnivorous eyes drilled a hole through his very soul and he gulped.

"My little sister Yuzu is very ill. Unless she gets her medicine she'll die from the fever! Toshiro isn't able to work, and the amounts of supplies I can buy only last for two days!" He shouted grabbing the fabric of the black kimono pulling the blue haired man close to him with a snarl.

His head snapped at the sound of metal sliding out of a wooden scabbard, and he snarled at Starrk. Grimmjow was awe stricken at the sheer force behind the voice and the strength in those incredibly skinny arms, his cyan eyes having shrunk to mere dots for a couple of seconds. Realizing Starrk was on the offensive, he put up a hand signaling the guard to stop. He placed firm hands above Ichigo's and forced his grip to loosen before he placed his hands on Ichigo's shoulders.

"I am so terribly sorry, I did not know of your sister's condition. Can you ride a horse?" Grimmjow said, true regret swirling in those beautiful cyan eyes. Ichigo was still glaring but gave a faint nod in conformation.

"Then we have no time to waste. Starrk, have Yammy prepare our finest horses, we are leaving immediately!" He shouted, the silver eyed man vanishing to inform the stable keeper of the emergency.

As Ichigo hurried after the prince through the decorated halls of the mansion he gave a silent prayer to his ancestors, hoping that Toshiro and Yuzu were ok.

**Ichigo waked up in the mansion of the emperor, only to be told that he is miles away from his ill sister. In a fit of rage and panic he manages to explain the situation, making the prince decide to help the orangette as they set out for Karakura town. **

**So second chapter! XD What do you think?**

**Reviews are most welcome ;)**


	3. Reverting to ones heritage

**Reverting to ones heritage**

The sound of heavy hooves clashing violently against the ground was heard all throughout Karakura town as Prince Jaegueraques, Starrk and Ichigo sped down the streets on their large mounts with Ichigo in the lead. Ichigo was trembling all over, his fear of his sister and his lover's well-being chilling him to the bone as he repeatedly spurred his horse forward. Since he had yelled at the prince his eyes had never reverted back to their normal warm and chocolate brown color, the gold was completely dominant as Ichigo's instincts were raging inside him telling him to protect his family.

As he rushed down the street an all too familiar scent passed through his nostrils, causing his fear to be replaced by rage. His golden eyes turned into slits and golden fur began growing from his body, as an incredibly large roar that a normal cheetah would never have been able to produce shot out from the top of his lungs. Grimmjow watched in shock as Ichigo let his animal soul loose, his tail and ears growing along with ear tufts.

"Ichigo, what the hell are you doing?" Grimmjow snapped from behind on his own mount.

"They're there, I can smell it!" Ichigo snarled. "Fuck this horse is slow!" he continued. Starrk observed as Ichigo's body began growing even more fur, and he could begin seeing the spotted pattern that was the trademark of a cheetah.

"Grimmjow, he's transforming!" Starrk yelled.

"I can bloody tell you lazy bastard!" Grimmjow fired back and gasped when Ichigo let go of the reins and jumped of the horse, morphing completely during midair and landing gracefully on four limbs immediately catching speed.

Grimmjow and Starrk's mounts hadn't even the slightest chance of keeping up as Ichigo reverted completely to his feline heritage, his long and agile body accelerating into speeds well above 60 km an hour. All the while Grimmjow could hear low frequency roars that could breach a wide km radius, and he shuddered at the rage that hid behind those roars.

Bystanders watched with awe as a cheetah ran past them, followed by the prince and his loyal servant on their two mounts, leading the one Ichigo had abandoned by its reins. The horses were neighing wildly at the tension and danger, their nostrils flaring as their masters pushed them to their limits. Finally they put up a protest as a ferocious roar filled with killing intent shook the whole district.

For a moment Grimmjow was paralyzed, his feline heritage screaming for him to respond the call, because under that killing intent he could feel the praying for help and his instincts were bucking at the restraining chains he had on his animal soul. Starrk didn't experience the same effect since he was of canine heritage, and he watched Grimmjow with questioning eyes as he tried to calm his mount down.

Grimmjow didn't say anything to his companion; he spurred his still protesting mount forward as those vivid blue eyes lit up in the dim light of the dirty streets leaving what seemed like thin lines of blue glowing fog in the cold air as he rushed towards where the roar had come from.

**~~~~~~~~~~BMBD~~~~~~~~~~**

Ichigo's golden eyes shrank as his claws dug into the ground making him slide stop in front of his home. The sight he saw was horrible, two hyenas were inside his home and he could see his beloved silvette lying severely wounded in a pool of blood at the side of

Yuzu's bed, obviously having fallen trying to protect his little sister. He stood there panting, trying to catch every little detail of the gruesome scene inside his house. He looked over to Yuzu's small frame, and he did his utmost to try and hear those familiar rasping breaths she made, but it was silent except for the breath coming from Toshiro and the hyenas'. Yuzu's small body was covered in blood from a large gash that ran down her side, and that was the final drop in the pool for Ichigo.

Grimmjow arrived to see Ichigo mercilessly tear out the throat of one of the hyenas', before ferociously going for the next one. His claws dug into the thick skin of the hyena making it yowl out in pain. The two canines couldn't even begin to understand what it was that had attacked them, and before the remaining one could act he was assaulted by the blinded cheetah. Ichigo sunk his fangs into the throat if the last hyena, a maniac like laughter erupting from those jaws as he detached himself licking his mouth.

As soon as the pulse belonging to the hyena's had disappeared Ichigo broke out of state seeing as the enemies had been dealt with. Golden reverted to brown as his whole body began shivering, and Grimmjow watched as the blood cloaked cheetah morphed into its human body, Ichigo immediately running over to Yuzu's bed.

He bent his head down to rest on the fragile girl's chest and listened for any sound of her heart still fighting. He was about to give up when he heard a very faint thump from deep within her chest. A relieved meow escaped his mouth as he began pumping at the center of her chest before bending her head back and clamping down on her nose, breathing air into her lungs. He repeated the procedure frantically over and over again, his panic growing with each failed try. He cried out in happiness when small coughs filled with blood ripped through Yuzu's fragile frame and he thanked the heavens he came just in time.

Outside Grimmjow had fallen to his knees in shock. The sight of Ichigo losing his mind and completely reverting to a pure cheetah form had been beautiful, while at the same time it was scary as hell. Then Ichigo had snapped out of it just like that, his mind instantly set on doing everything he could to save his little sister and Grimmjow had watched with his heart up in his throat as Ichigo desperately tried to revive his little sister. When the coughing sound was heard his heart had dropped back down into his chest, and he had shakily gotten to his feet, Starrk arriving seconds later only to be taken aback by the horrible scene.

Starrk could see a blood covered Ichigo hugging his little sister tightly, and he could see silver hair tainted with blood sprawled out on the floor. Toshiro was lying unconscious on the floor with blood streaming out of several wounds. He could survive if he got help quick enough and Starrk rushed past Grimmjow and lifted the silvette up cradling the small frame belonging to the man in his arms. When stepping outside he sighed in relief as he saw that the medical squad he has secretly told to follow them finally arrived.

A fairly tall woman with a long braid fastened around her throat so that it would dangle over her chest rushed forward and practically snatched the shredded man from Starrk's arms. All the while Ichigo remained by Yuzu's bed, not noticing the commotion happening outside at all as he tried to stabilize his sister. Blood was still gushing out of the large wound in her side, and he ripped of the upper part of his tattered kimono to use it as a bandage. He did his best to put pressure on the large scale wound, before he knotted the improvised bandages tightly around her thin frame.

"Ichigo…" Yuzu wheezed.

"It's ok Yuzu, everything's fine now," Ichigo cried out his breath hitching as Yuzu passed out again.

He jumped as a heavy hand landed on his shoulder and spun around with a menacing snarl to meet the blue eyes of Grimmjow.

"It's ok now Ichigo. We have medical aid outside, please carry her out there," he soothed as he released a special set of calming pheromones to ease the agitated orangette. Ichigo nodded a silent thanks before he got to his feet cradling the tiny frame of the ill girl in his arms as he dashed out of the house.

"Retsu, this girl needs immediate attention!" Grimmjow barked as he followed Ichigo out into the street.

The black haired woman was up and about the moment Grimmjow's voice rang through the air, and she hurried over to Ichigo as he knelt by the small tent that had already been put up. He hesitantly passed Yuzu on into the arms of the medic, and cast a glance to the left freezing as the light reflected in silver hair. He had completely pushed Toshiro's condition to the deepest depths of his mind when he arrived, his instincts allowing him to only tend for the one that needed care the most, which had obviously been the fragile Yuzu at the moment.

He got up in the split of a second and brushed past two nurses and slid down besides the field futon the albino caracal was lying on. He grabbed Toshiro's petite palm in his hands and clasped his fingers around the incredibly cold limb.

"I'm so sorry Toshiro. I'm so sorry," he hitched as tears began running down his face while his frame shivered.

Turquoise eyes rolled around during heavy eyelids as that oh so familiar voice that brought a promise of safety nudged his very soul, warming it till the point he could not take it anymore. Pale eyelids slid open and revealed hazy eyes, as Toshiro viewed a blurred out world. By his side holding his hand he saw a figure he couldn't recognize, but it couldn't be anyone but his beloved Ichigo.

"Ichigo?" he called softly hearing the breath of the orangette hitch at the sound of his own voice.

"Toshiro!" Ichigo cried out dropping his head onto Toshiro's small chest with a loud sob, fisting his fingers into the fabric of the white robes he was clad in. Toshiro smiled and moved his hands to rest on Ichigo's head and patted the cheetah while making a loving purring sound. "I'm so sorry Toshiro. If I had come earlier this wouldn't have happened. Oh God I am so sorry," Ichigo cried staining the white robes with his tears.

"Shhhh… You couldn't have prevented this even if you tried to. The important thing is that you came, even from so far away," Toshiro smiled tears rolling down his face.

Ichigo sniffed and dried his face of his tears before cupping his hands around Toshiro's back clinging his small frame to his in a hug. Toshiro winced a little as the sudden motion ripped in his wounds, but the pain was something he would gladly endure to be able to rest safely in Ichigo's warm arms once again.

"Besided, this is not even close to making up for what you did for me back then Ichigo. Without you I would have never endured this world," Toshiro sobbed as he sunk into Ichigo's warm chest. This time it was Ichigo that soothed him, rubbing small circles above his pelvis making Toshiro purr in delight.

From the other side of the tent both Grimmjow and Starrk watched the couple and it became clear to them just how much those two meant to each was falling harder and harder for the fiery cheetah, and he hadn't failed to notice all the glances cast at Ichigo by his best friend. They watched in silence as the small silvette succumbed to sleep in Ichigo's arm, Ichigo gently laying his small frame back down on the futon before standing up and walking over to their side of the tent with a dirty face covered in blood and tear streaks.

Ichigo didn't even spare them a glance as he knelt beside his little sister, who was patched up properly and had gotten sedatives and medicine for her illness. He was a bit startled when the slim figure of the chief healer Retsu knelt beside him to check on the girl. She placed a hand on Yuzu's forehead, her face remaining stripped of all emotion. But Ichigo knew she was pleased, the aura around her changed and he sighed out in relief.

"She's going to be ok isn't she," he asked.

"She will be fine, but she has a hard battle to fight. Healing that injury while fighting of her disease is going to be tough," Retsu admitted.

"She has endured that illness for 3 years, she's a strong little fighter," Ichigo exclaimed with proud eyes.

"Quite a remarkable feat with the way you're living," Retsu said. "Grimmjow said you were able to return completely to your heritage," Retsu said surprising Ichigo. He scowled at the woman and then sighed.

"It's true. I've been able to tap into my cheetah heritage ever since I could remember. These hands have killed many because of that," he said his aura creating a dark bubble around him as he stared into the ground.

"You're not to be held responsible for that," Retsu soothed. "Tell me, are you ill often?" she asked. Grimmjow and Starrk watched as Ichigo's irises shrank for a moment as he seemed to be thinking about the question.

"To be frank I haven't had any major illnesses since I was little. Only the occasional cold," he admitted. Retsu's eyes lit up as she saw possibilities of helping his little sister.

"That means you have very thick and pure blood. It's a good chance that your blood might work as a powerful medicine to keep the fever in check," she said. Ichigo's eyes lit up at that statement only to fade again at the next words the healer spoke. "It will help stall the illness, but she'll never recover from it. I am incredibly sad for her, such an illness cannot be cured," Retsu spoke with sadness in her eyes.

Both Grimmjow and Starrk were shocked at the news, and both wanted to rush up to Ichigo and comfort him. The fiery and strong cheetah had wormed his way into their heart long since, and seeing him in so much pain was terrible for them. When Ichigo broke out in tears they could only watch as the gentle medic cradled Ichigo in her lap, soothing him with her beautiful voice as she hummed ancient tones of hope while stroking the grieving cheetah.

**~~~~~~~~~~BMBD~~~~~~~~~~**

Ichigo was in the lead together with Grimmjow and Starrk as their little parade of medics, soldiers and various other classes made their way up the streets in Seiretei. Grimmjow had basically threatened Ichigo to give up his life in Karakura town and come with him to never live life as a poor man again. Ichigo had protested loudly with the argument of it bringing him even farther away from what little family he had left, but in the end there had been to many upsides with the change of life for Ichigo to resist, even Toshiro had pressured him.

Retsu had taken Yuzu along with her own party to write her in at the royal hospital for special treatment, several bottles of Ichigo's blood safely stocked in her medicine carriage for treatment of his little sister. The people in the street made way for the royal caravan and bowed or knelt in the presence of the prince, as they all wondered who the beautiful orangette that rode at his side was.

Behind them came a thoroughly cushioned medical carriage carrying Toshiro in it, surrounded by one guard at each corner along with four medics that were on standby should Toshiro need any help. Ichigo was pretty back to his normal self, and would throw rude retorts at both Grimmjow and Starrk when they tried to lighten the mood with jokes.

Ichigo was too much of a serious person, and Grimmjow and Starrk had a tough task in trying to loosen the cheetah up a bit. Finally reaching the very same mansion Ichigo had left the previous day, they were met by a hoard of different servants. Luppi and several other men came to take care of the horses, while the medic staff carried Toshiro inside at once.

Ichigo followed close behind Grimmjow, not used to such courtesy as several servants came up to him offering him help. They had been informed through mail by one of the hell riders of Ichigo's arriving, and they had immediately adapted to adding sama to Ichigo's name, which greatly displeased him for some reason. He gave humble smiles and tried to hide behind either Grimmjow or Starrk as he followed them inside through the main entrance.

His feet were set on cold marble floor as he entered the most beautiful room he had ever been in. It was clearly the throne room, and it's walls were a beautiful white with blue, black and golden dragons curling and dancing. They were so well painted that Ichigo at one point thought they were going to come out of the wall. In the far end of the hall a beautifully carved throne sat, two dragons swirling up from the floor, around the armrests, before disappearing behind its back, their heads reappearing on the top facing each other with snarls. Their eyes were made of blue crystals, and they seemed to shine as Grimmjow came farther inside the room. On the walls beautifully carved torch mounts were attached, and the torches illuminated the room making it come to life. The sheer aura of the room made Ichigo's spine tingle, and it became even harder for him to accept the fact that this was his new home…

* * *

**Ichigo rushes home only to find his partner and sister mortally wounded by the Hyenas that came back for revenge. In a fit of rage Ichigo reverts to his heritage and kills the hyenas' with cold blood, and revives his dying sister within the nick of time. A badly wounded Toshiro is treated by Unohana Retsu, whom also tells Ichigo his blood can stall Yuzu's decease to lengthen her lifespan. However the news of the incurable fever Yuzu has mortifies Ichigo, and he agrees to let her be written in at the royal hospital sending along his own blood with the medic. He is pushed into living at the royal estate, and he and Toshiro is brought to Grimmjow's palace for a permanent stay, its beauty dazzling Ichigo completely.**

**So what do you think? No smut in this chapter, but do not fear it will come eventually *smirks***

**Reviews encourage me to write, so please help fuel my creative mind by posting a response ;)**


	4. Safe

**Safe**

Ichigo's lean body stretched and he purred as he felt satisfying pops in his skeleton. He hadn't slept so well in ages, and his sun tanned fingers fisted into snow white sheets that smelled of lavender as he groggily sat up and yawned loudly. His brown eyes opened to the incredibly white walls of the private bedroom he had been given and he blinked a couple of times, still not quite used to waking up to such bright light. He rubbed his eyes and yawned again before he swung his feet off of the bed and stood up on the cold marble floor. He shuddered slightly as the cold went from his feet and up his spine, but shook it off as he for what was probably the hundred time studied the room closely.

It was square with white walls that were covered with wooden panels till the middle and has a low resting couch and tea table straight across the room from his bed. There were no windows, but he had plenty of light and private access to a small garden with a beautiful pond filled with koi fishes. The white of the walls were decorated in beautiful paintings of several orange tones, and the dragons that were depicted were so beautiful that Ichigo never got tired of admiring them.

In addition to his main room, he had a medium sized bathroom where he could find himself a tub and a toilet. He had already refused the offer for a personal servant, obviously disappointing the orange haired girl that had been selected for him. Ichigo knew from the start he would never be able to adapt to having someone do everything for him, he had grown up under too harsh conditions fending for himself to even begin thinking of having a personal servant.

He sighed contently before he turned left from his bed and gently shoved a small sliding door open, entering a room about the size of his bathroom. It was neatly decorated and had a comfy looking futon in the inner part of the room, in addition to a door that led out to Ichigo's private garden. He smiled at the bundle of silver hair that was sticking out from underneath the comforters, and the silent up and down movements of them told Ichigo the caracal was fast asleep.

He still hadn't recovered from the beating he had gotten from the hyenas, and Ichigo had insisted that he would share quarters with him and poor Grimmjow couldn't deny Ichigo of his wish. And so they had built this extra room in a matter of days, and here Toshiro was sound asleep safer than he had ever been in his entire life.

Ichigo knelt by Toshiro's futon and began dragging his fingers through the silvettes hair gently to not wake the sleeping albino, and chuckled when Toshiro made the cutest purring sounds in his sleep. He was really thankful towards Grimmjow for doing this for someone as simple as him, and he wondered why the prince found him so special.

Though he couldn't deny he had gained a certain interest in the beautiful man. When he had first seen Grimmjow he had wanted to drop to the floor. Grimmjow's skye blue hair that was cut short everywhere but his neck where the hair hung in a long loose braid that reached his hip seemed like the sky itself, as it danced with the wind whenever he moved. His tall body with a broad chest that was clearly well-built bragging of its strength was a true treat to watch, and that lovely scent that lingered around him. Saying he was interested in the prince would be false, even though he wouldn't admit it Ichigo was head over heels for the prince already, just like the prince was head over heels for him.

And then there was Starrk, even as much as Ichigo despised canines Starrk had wormed his way under his skin. Starrk's comforting presence and his gentle nature rubbed Ichigo the right way, and whenever Grimmjow couldn't pour his love over Ichigo, Starrk was there at the ready to heed Ichigo's smallest call. Starrk was nice and gentle, and never tread Ichigo's borders on purpose. He would always pull away if Ichigo felt uncomfortable, unlike the brasher Prince whom had difficulties on picking up small signs.

Ichigo chuckled when he compared the two, Grimmjow and Starrk were obviously close friends, and they were each other's exact opposites. The brash and energy filled Grimmjow was a great contrast to the calm and level headed Starrk, and really those two complimented each other in the best way possible. And one other thing Ichigo liked about both of them was the fact that they were strong, which was easy to tell by their heavy and confident pressure. Ichigo couldn't help but feel safe and protected whenever he was around them, and slowly he began accepting the pair into his life till the point that he didn't mind them coming into his quarters unannounced.

He heard the door to his room slide open, and the subbing sound of Starrks lazy footing made him smile as the canine stepped inside. "Ichigo?" Starrk called softly before looking around to see if he could catch sight of the orangette.

"I'm in here," Ichigo called back and was joined by Starrk shortly after.

"How's he doing?" Starrk asked true concern within his voice.

"He's doing ok, he just needs to sleep as much as possible," Ichigo answered thankful that the canine showed care for the small caracal.

Ichigo sighed and stood up slowly stretching again, loud pops resounding within the room and Starrk smiled at the low purring sound Ichigo made. Seconds after Ichigo was resting against Starrk's shoulder on the small couch in his room, Starrk's hand going through Ichigo's hair lovingly. He knew that Ichigo hadn't quite yet adapted to living in the royal mansion, and that this lifestyle was quite unnatural to the orangette. Starrk was a man of observation and even though Ichigo seemed to feel comfortable and relaxed against him, he could tell the orangette was churning on something.

"Say Starrk, why did Grimmjow decide to protect someone like me? What kind of value could I possibly have to him?" Ichigo asked tilting his head so he could make eye contact with the grey eyed canine.

"To be frank I don't know the complete truth about his motives either. But ever since his father died Grimmjow has had a strong sense of justice. He's often visiting the poor districts of Japan and he's always trying to find ways to help those whom have it hard," Starrk replied.

Ichigo didn't have time to reply before Starrk continued.

"However, the situation was quite the opposite when his father was still alive. Grimmjow's father believed that all were equal and did his best to teach Grimmjow that. Grimmjow was arrogant and couldn't care less for what happened to the people, in his mind at the time they were just pawns to be used and thrown away. Grimmjow's father had to die while trying to stop a quarrel between two families before Grimmjow finally got the message. Now he does anything to help to honor his great father, but I don't think that was the only reason he picked helped you against the hyenas or picked you up that day," Starrk admitted.

"So why do you think he decided to save me then?" Ichigo replied. Starrk seemed to have to think a while about that one before he seemed to find a satisfying answer.

"Well I'm not sure really. I just know that when he first saw you fighting against those thugs something changed. I sensed a change in his aura, and his eyes lit up like I've never seen them do before. And I know you must have felt something when you were brought back here and met him again," Starrk spoke truthfully.

Ichigo blushed slightly at that before he looked at Starrk again.

"Well I can't deny that. He might be brash and loud but he has a pure heart and so do you. I owe you and Grimmjow a lot, so I feel I should be honest with you at least," Ichigo smiled and purred when Starrk cradled him closer.

"Don't mention it, I can't deny the fact that you caught my eye as well," Starrk chuckled and smiled when Ichigo blushed again.

"Why is it that I caught your eye?" Ichigo said with a smirk curious to know why he attracted this attention from the prince and his guard.

"Well for starters you're incredibly beautiful, for seconds you have a way of lighting up everyone's day, for the third you're strong and protective, and for the fourth you're a cheetah," Starrk said with a smile. Ichigo blushed again, grateful that him being a cheetah didn't seem to be the main reason for him catching his eye.

"Surprisingly you're the first one to ever say all that to me. Most men or women that have come for me have only done so because of my breed. To me breed shouldn't matter, the only thing that is important is the feelings one has for another," Ichigo said reaching a hand up to play with Starrk's wavy brown hair.

"Well then, that's what I and Grimmjow believe as well. I've never seen Grimmjow start a relationship where he doesn't intend to be serious," Starrk answered. That last comment made Ichigo like the blue haired prince even more; it showed that Grimmjow valued feelings.

"To be honest I despise most canines, I haven't met a single one that wouldn't harm me until I met you," Ichigo admitted. Starrk's eyes widened abit at Ichigo's confession and stopped stroking Ichigo. "But you, you're different. You appreciate me for who I am, and you haven't done anything to cause me harm. You're gentle and nice, and you respect me. I guess that's why you have wormed your way under my skin," Ichigo continued with a blush.

"I'm glad to hear that," Starrk purred before looking Ichigo in the eyes.

Ichigo closed his eyes when Starrk's lips sealed his own, and he gladly joined the dance he was invited to. Ichigo loved the feeling of being dominated by Starrk, and he purred into the kiss reaching his hands behind Starrk's head to fist them into his long hair. Starrk growled in approval before he gently pushed Ichigo down on the couch, releasing his lips to nibble on his neck.

Ichigo moaned before Starrk caught his lips in another kiss, tugging at his lip making Ichigo snarl at the canine. They indulged in a passionate make out session, until Starrk felt Ichigo beginning to resist. He released their lips with a pop and gave Ichigo concerned grey eyes.

"Its fine Starrk, I'm just not ready for anything beyond this yet," Ichigo said, knowing his limits very well.

Starrk only smiled and cradled Ichigo close, making a gentle humming sound from deep within his throat that lulled Ichigo into a comfortable slumber. He looked up when he heard light footsteps on the marble floor, and smiled when he recognized the turquoise eyes belonging to Ichigo's lover. Toshiro stared at Ichigo whom was dozing off comfortably at Starrks shoulder and then looked back at Starrk.

Starrk smiled and made a patting motion on the right side of the couch and beckoned for the caracal to join them. Toshiro hesitated for a second before he slowly made his way over to the couch on slightly shaking feet, his small frame crawling up on the right side of Starrk's warm body. Toshiro hesitated once he was up on the couch, uncertain as to what he should do.

A small meow of surprise escaped him when Starrk's large hand reached around his waist and dragged Toshiro in under his arm. Toshiro was tense for a moment before he finally realized he would be safe with the man even though he was canine. If Ichigo hadn't been there already Toshiro would have never approached the large canine, and soon he was resting his head in Starrk's warm lap with a low purr as that gentle hand went through his silver hair in a comforting manner.

Toshiro soon joined Ichigo in dreamland, and when Grimmjow entered the room a quarter later he was stunned by the display. There on the couch sat a half asleep Starrk with Toshiro on his lap sleeping, and Ichigo resting comfortably on his sturdy shoulder.

"So old friend, what exactly have you been up to while I was gone?" Grimmjow called, startling the brunette out of his comfortable slumber.

"Oh just taking care of these two. Ichigo here tastes delicious by the way," Starrk said with a teasing voice and a grin.

"I see, well then I might just steal him away one day," Grimmjow teased back with a grin before he too went over to the small group, sliding down with his back resting between Starrk's legs. He reached two muscular arms up, one to rest over Toshiro's slim waist, the other to rest in Ichigo's lap.

Shortly after all four were sound asleep purring at the comfort and safety of being bundled up together, and when Grimmjow and Starrk's personal servants came to look for their masters they had to smile at the incredibly cute picture inside the room. One of the servants sat down in a good angle, and drew forth a piece of papyrus and a trimmed piece of charcoal.

His fellow servant joined him and observed the work his friend was doing closely, as a detailed sketch appeared bit by bit on the paper. Giving a satisfied nod once he had finished the picture, his fellow servant made a hand sign and minutes after skilled servants had placed a full meal on the small tea table for their masters to consume when they woke up from their slumber. The two servants slipped out _and went to tell the rest of the staff about what they had seen. _

**_~~~~~~~~BMBD~~~~~~~~~~_**

Brown eyes opened to a dim lit room and the feeling of something heavy resting across his abdomen. He rubbed his eyes and looked down do see Grimmjow resting his head in his lap, strong arms firmly locked around Ichigo's waist. Starrk was lankily leaned back with his hands resting high on the back of the couch, dangling in the air, while Toshiro was curled up on Grimmjow's back. It took a while for him to realize, but sometime during sleep Grimmjow and Toshiro had both joined his and Starrk's moment of cuddle, and he smiled. He didn't mind at all, being able to curl up with multiple people that he cared for was a great comfort and made him feel at home and safe. He looked towards the door when a small knock was heard and he called "Come in," to whoever it was. He smiled at the orange haired girl that stepped in with a shy smile.

"Oh Orihime, good morning," Ichigo yawned.

"Actually Ichigo-sama, it would be good evening.

Ichigo scowled a little before he noticed how dim lighted the room actually was and let out a small _oh_ before smiling at the shy servant.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" Orohime asked with big and hopeful eyes. Ichigo smiled at the cute girl before nodding.

"You can help me clean up this mess so we can all eat," he said with a grin before gently shaking Grimmjow by his shoulders.

"Oi Grimmjow time to wake up!" Ichigo said and smiled when the bluenette grumbled and opened hazy cyan eyes to meet warm brown ones.

"Don't want to," he muttered before letting his head fall down again. Ichigo sighed and made a hopeless face towards Orihime before smacking Grimmjow over the back.

"Ouch teme, what was that for!" Grimmjow complained loudly.

"Quit acting like a baby and get off of me. You're a prince Grimmjow and it's beginning to darken outside. You probably have work to do," Ichigo scolded.

Grimmjow made a very cute pout before he finally released Ichigo so he could slide off the couch. Ichigo smiled and went to pick up Toshiro, waking the small caracal in the process. Hazy turquoise eyes opened to look into Ichigo's face and Toshiro smiled.

"Oh morning Ichigo," he yawned before getting kissed on the forehead.

"Actually it's good evening, now I believe we should all eat. Grimmjow wake up the sleeping fur ball," Ichigo commanded and Grimmjow grumpily did as he was told.

Minutes later Orihime had disposed of the food that the servants from before had placed inside Ichigo's quarters only to become cold and useless, and had replaced it with a freshly cooked hot-pot. Minutes later Ichigo, Grimmjow, Starrk and Toshiro enjoyed a meal and were chatting about random stuff not seeming like royal people at all.

"So Toshiro, how are your injuries coming along?" Grimmjow asked.

"Oh they are pretty much healed, but they'll add quite a few scars I'm afraid," Toshiro said with a smile, not noticing how Ichigo winced slightly at the mention of scars, but both Grimmjow and Starrk did and eyed the orangette with suspicion.

"And how about your injury Ichigo," Starrk continued. Ichigo looked confused for a moment before he finally realized they meant his bandaged soldier.

"Oh this?" he asked pointing at his shoulder, before ripping of the bandages startling the other three.

"Ichigo what are you doing?" Grimmjow asked shocked.

"I had nearly forgotten about this. You just reminded me of how these unnecessary bandages annoyed the shit out of me," Ichigo grumbled before stroking light fingers against the only things left that indicated he had had a badly infected wound in his shoulder."It was just a scratch anyway," Ichigo finished before picking up his chopsticks to snatch another bite of food.

Grimmjow wondered how in the world Ichigo could call such an injury for a mere scratch, and now he became even more curious to find out about where all those scars he had seen marring his skin that day he was working in the field had come from.

Since then Ichigo had gained some weight and he looked better than ever, and both Grimmjow and Starrk had walked in on him when he exercised himself out in the garden. Ichigo hadn't noticed the audience, he was too busy keeping in shape and Grimmjow and Starrk had simply enjoyed the show. Half an hour later they were finished dining, and Starrk and Grimmjow had to leave for their duties, and Ichigo and Toshiro were left alone.

Ichigo kissed Toshiro deeply before hugging him closely.

"I'm glad you're ok love," he cooed and purred when Toshiro snuggled close and buried his head in Ichigo's neckline. "What do you say about taking a relaxing bath in a hot spring?" Ichigo asked while they snuggled close together.

"Sounds really nice," Toshiro purred with a smirk and shortly after Ichigo had Orihime escort them to the private hot springs that were only a short walk from the mansion which owned them. Minutes later Toshiro purred as the warm water soother his aching muscles and hurting wounds, and slid in under Ichigo's arm which cradled him close and he purred when Ichigo kissed his head lovingly.

* * *

**Yup, just a snuggle chapter really. It's needed once in a while, but don't fear the smut will come XD *smirks***

**So what did you think?**

**About TGR, I'm not sure when I will be able to update but on Monday I'll get to know if I'm pulled for any of the exams, and then all my time will go to preparations sadly (If I'm pulled up for one of course.)**

**Anyways, please review ;)**


	5. The story about silver and gold

**The story about silver and gold**

Ichigo slid open the door to his quarters and dumped the caracal onto his futon. Their hair was still damp from their bath and their skin still most given the fact that they hadn't made time for drying properly. What started as a small gentle kiss to Toshiro's head had quickly developed into a yearning for each other, which was a result of them being apart physically for too long.

Toshiro meowed and looked up at Ichigo with pleading turquoise eyes, and Ichigo simply melted at Toshiro's feet before he dropped down on the bed. He purred lovingly as his rough tongue licked Toshiro's delicate feet, his hands brushing the robe further up as he trailed the silvette's slim legs with his wet tongue.

Toshiro purred at the caress, his toes curling into the comforters on the large heightened futon they were laying on his eyes half lidded as the simple caress sent jolts of pleasure through his body. He was craving Ichigo's touch, with all the things that had been going on and the injuries he had gotten they hadn't had the chance to show their passion for such a long time.

Ichigo let his firm hands slide across Toshiro's fine yet scarred skin as he moved his mouth further up, his head delving in beneath the fabric that covered Toshiro's chest with a smirk. Toshiro gasped when that rough tongue found one of his nipples, circling around it before giving it a firm suck making it erect. Ichigo's hands robbed soothing circles on Toshiro's hips as he moved up to seal those soft lips with his own, his tongue digging in deep to explore the warm cave and its paths.

Toshiro played with Ichigo, a battle of love taking place inside his mouth as Ichigo's rough tongue swirled around and caressed his own with such great care. The silver hair moaned into Ichigo's kiss, his hands sneaking up to fist into orange locks forcing the orangette's head closer to deepen the kiss. A growl of lust erupted from Ichigo at his lovers longing actions, and he released the seal on Toshiro's lips with a pop, licking his lips seductively before smirking and repositioning himself.

Turquoise eyes shrank as Ichigo took a firm grip on the base of the caracal's small member and gave it a light testing stroke. The sensitive caracal arched his back with a lustful moan passing through parted lips, and Ichigo purred in approval as he let his tongue caress the tip of his lover's shaft. Ichigo's sinful tongue glided through the slit and traced the fine lines of the small member before he finally engulfed it with his warm mouth, Toshiro mewling softly at the new pleasure that was added.

Ichigo's throat began vibrating as he purred in rhythm with his bobbing, increasing the level of pleasure he provided for the albino. Ichigo smiled when he felt the silvette's muscles tense and he let out a lusty growl when the silver like essence moistened his throat, his senses treasuring the salty taste.

"Mmm….n-ah…Ichigoooo…" Toshiro purred when Ichigo slipped a finger coated in his own pre-cum through Toshiro's throbbing entrance.

Ichigo proceeded to let out small grunts of encouragement as he stretched and prepared the small framed man for the much larger intrusion that would come later. Toshiro's voice produced the most arousing mewls, moans and squeaks as Ichigo worked his insides the right way, soon with three fingers pulsing in and out in wave like motions.

"N-ah…hah…Ichi..Hurry..ah-n…up…" The silver hair pleaded and Ichigo's member throbbed at the incredibly sexy tone Toshiro spoke in.

Ichigo removed his fingers with a pop before moaning and letting his tongue trail a full path of saliva from Toshiro's groan and upwards till his lips was sealed, making it look like he was about to devour the caracal. Ichigo sealed his lover's lips before he positioned his member at the warm and inviting entrance, sliding his shaft in with one elegant and gentle thrust that made the silver hair break the kiss with a loud gasp before his hands clung hard to Ichigo's back leaving marks that would most likely bruise later.

"Mmm..n-ah…Toshi…so…ah-n…tight…" Ichigo groaned as the caracal abused his back.

"Move…baka…n-ah…" Toshiro mused and Ichigo smirked at him seductively before licking his lips.

"Hai,hai…" he moaned before pulling out till only the tip was in, before thrusting back in full force earning a yowl of pleasure and pain from the caracal as he arched his back into the thrust. Ichigo growled in a dominant way before he began a speedy rhythm with firm thrusts building up the pressure in his own and Toshiro's groin gradually.

"Mmmnnn….harder…faster…N-AH!" Toshiro yowled out as Ichigo complied before he finished his sentence, the orangette switching to a ruthless and hard pace making Toshiro ride the thrusts and meet them. Ichigo growled and purred simultaneously as he changed his angle just enough so that he knew he would hit it.

Turquoise eyes shrank and a husky voice yowled out as Toshiro felt his prostate being nailed, and his sharp nails pricked through Ichigo's skin leaving 10 small trails of blood pouring down Ichigo's already flaming and abused back. Ichigo snarled at the pain but it only enticed him to continue as he began ramming the caracal's prostate, turning the albino into a moaning mess. Toshiro was gasping and moaning and tried his best to meet Ichigo's thrusts as he neared his oblivion, his eyes rolling back at the intense pleasure.

"N-ah…Ichigo…I'm gonna… hah…hah…cum…n-ah…" Toshiro groaned and Ichigo rammed into him once more making the caracal fall off of his safe cliff, and he moaned loudly when the silky walls constricted around his pulsing member, pulling his release only seconds after his beautiful silver jewel. Toshiro let a happy mewl escape his throat when he felt Ichigo's warm essence coating his insides and he didn't mind one bit when Ichigo's exhausted body fell down on top of him. It strained some of his wounds but he didn't give a fuck.

Ichigo soon rolled off of him and pulled the turquoise eyed man into his grasp, cradling him and nuzzling the soft neck belonging to the silver hair. Toshiro purred and scooted even closer to his lover, his chest heaving up and down calmly as he was lulled to sleep by the vibrations in Ichigo's large warm chest that were a result of his happy purring. Shortly after Toshiro was fast asleep while Ichigo decided to stay awake through the rest of the evening in case someone should need them, his hand held protectively around the small frame belonging to the albino, cradling him close as Toshiro rested his head on his master's chest purring weakly in his sleep.

-BMBD-

About an hour later around nine, Grimmjow and Starrk came inside, their duties finished for the day.

"Yo," Ichigo called with a smile as he patted Toshiro's sleeping head and looked at the two beautiful men.

They scrunched their noses, the scent of a mating was still lingering in the room and Ichigo noticed that they found out. The smirk he directed at them was soon shared by the prince and his guard and Grimmjow grinned.

"So, he any good in bed?" he spoke softly to not wake the sleeping albino. Ichigo blushed slightly at the question before his brown eyes lit up with amusement.

"Oh he's quite the treat," Ichigo teased.

"Hoh… Sounds tempting, you might want to share him no?" Grimmjow chuckled. At that reply Ichigo's face went dark and a slightly dark aura surrounded him.

"H-hey Ichigo, what's wrong?" Grimmjow asked suddenly nervous, had he said something to anger the cheetah?

"Don't ever think of touching him" Ichigo snarled silently.

"Ok ok.. It was just a joke, calm down," Starrk cooed and Ichigo broke out of his dark trance. Ichigo looked at the half fear half puzzled expression in both of their faces and smiled sadly.

"Sorry about that, it's not because I want him to myself that I said that… It's to protect Toshiro," Ichigo explained.

"What do you mean protect him?" Starrk asked silently.

"It's a long story, and quite a dark one at that," Ichigo said with a sad tone to his voice. "Can I trust you guys?" Ichigo asked with a serious and stern face.

"Of course you can!" They both replied in unison.

"Then I need you to never discuss what I am about to tell you when Toshiro is nearby, never ever," Ichigo said pinning them both with his slightly glowing eyes. They only nodded, sincere gazes thrown back at Ichigo. "He'll probably hate me for telling you this. It has to do with his past," Ichigo began.

"I found Toshiro beaten up and half dead in the ditch of a farmer's road 5 years ago. I took the poor fellow home and pleaded for my father to let me treat him and thank god he allowed me too. I could tell by the state his body was in that he had been heavily abused wherever he had come from, and that he had probably fled his home, though I would hardly call it a home. I treated his wounds and when he came to he was scared to the bone of me and my family, it took me two whole weeks to make him trust me a little," Ichigo continued.

Starrk and Grimmjow were playing close attention to the silent voice Ichigo spoke in, it was obvious that the topic was painful for the orangette, his eyes revealed his emotions clearly.

"Toshiro came from a middle class family, but was shunned from his clan due to his white fur. Being an albino these days isn't exactly easy you see. Shunned he had to find a new way of living, and as far as I know he worked as a waiter at a local inn close to his hometown, but then he was scouted by some shady men. They were the henchmen of a local feudal lord and they captured him and took him to the estate," Ichigo said before swallowing deeply, a tear poking in the corner of his eye before he continued with a slightly shaky voice.

"Toshiro was made a slave, and they beat the crap out of him every time he refused to listen. He has so many old bone fractures that they can't be counted, I examined him thoroughly. He has a bad limp from several bone fractures, and his arms are fragile due to the same type of injuries. When they finally forced him into submission he was presented to the lord of the house, whom fell for his exotic beauty and forced Toshiro into becoming his…his…his…" Ichigo hitched and stopped to let a silent sob shake his body.

"His what Ichigo?" Starrk asked worriedly.

"I'm sorry, let me move him to his own room before I continue," Ichigo stuttered gently moving off the large futon cradling Toshiro in his arms, moving into the side room and left Toshiro to rest in his own private little room. Ichigo climbed onto his futon on slightly wobbly feet, leaning back heavily into the wall of pillows that were supported by the wall behind the futon.

Ichigo just sat there staring into open air for a long while, the sorrow in his eyes drawing the prince and the guard in as Grimmjow and Starrk scooted over to Ichigo's bed. Starrk gently cupped Ichigo's head and stared into his deep brown eyes.

"You don't have to continue with the story. It's obviously a topic you don't like to talk about," Starrk said with an understanding voice. Ichigo shook his head with a sad smile before he replied

"No, it's better if you know."

Starrk looked at Ichigo once again before he smiled gently at Ichigo moving to sit behind him, shoving Ichigo down so the orangette rested his head in Starrk's warm lap. Grimmjow soon joined and positioned himself so that his chest rested on the lower part of Ichigo's torso, his arms moving up and under Ichigo's body to hug him as he rested his head on Ichigo's soft abdominal muscles.

"It's alright Ichigo, spill it all out," Grimmjow soothed, a low purr vibrating through his chest as a reassurance for the cheetah. Ichigo smiled at the gentle way they were treating him, it made him feel wanted and accepted and he was drawn even further in by their characters in that very moment.

"He made Toshiro his personal sex toy," Ichigo continued. Grimmjow and Starrk's facec lit up with shock and disgust while they patiently waited for Ichigo to continue.

"Toshiro was violated and abused till he was unconscious every single night, sustaining wounds that were never allowed to heal. When I found him his lower limbs and obody parts were torn up and bleeding and he was such a horrible sight. Toshiro finally made his escape when a group of thieves raided the estate, and he collapsed half dead on the road I found him on with a broken pelvis," Ichigo continued.

"Toshiro is so ashamed of himself and what he did for that horrible lord; he refuses to show anyone but me his body. He hates his skin because it's heavily marred by the scars that remind him of the awful intercourse and punishments he was given. It took me 2 years showering him with love to make him open to me, and 6 more months for me to be allowed to teach him the pleasure one can gain from sexual intercourse," Ichigo said taking a short break.

"He endured that life for 6 horrible years. Toshiro is actually older than me though it might not look that way. I am only 23, but Toshiro is actually about 28 year's old, take or add a few," Ichigo admitted. "He still lives with the shame, and no matter how much I try I can't stop him from loathing his own existence," Ichigo said sadly.

"He's actually older than both of us!" Starrk said. "I'm 27 and Grimmjow is 25," Starrk said.

"Actually we thought that you were 20 Ichigo," Grimmjow admitted. Ichigo smiled at them before snuggling closer to both men.

"But such a sad story, I can't believe the poor guy had to go through such a horrible thing. If I knew the name of the feudal lord I'd strip him off his position right away," Grimmjow snarled clenching Ichigo slightly.

"Ita-ta-taaah," Ichigo whined and Grimmjow immediately released some of the pressure.

"I'm sorry, but stories like that just utterly disgust me. People whom treat other people like that don't deserve to walk my lands," Grimmjow continued with an angered voice.

Ichigo was taken aback by the strong emotion swirling in Grimmjow's aura. How was it possible for a proud prince to care so much for people he hardly knew. He had taken Ichigo, Yuzu and Toshiro in on a whim and they had been allowed to stay. He had barely known them for a month and already he felt this strong about Toshiro's pain, and it was obvious Starrk shared the prince's mindset.

Ichigo slowly began to realize how lucky he was to have been found by them, and he knew he had an attraction towards both that he couldn't possibly resist no matter how hard he tried.

"I appreciate your anger Grimmjow, I really do but if Toshiro found out that you knew about his condition and got rid of the feudal lord he'd probably be angry. He hates it when people look upon him with pity," Ichigo said, letting his hands fall down to twist into wavy blue strands of hair.

Grimmjow purred at the gentle caress and sent Ichigo an understanding smile before he let go of his chest and pulled himself up in a sitting position. Ichigo smiled back and proceeded to yawn widely, before his eyes became half lidded and he rolled off Starrk. Starrk and Grimmjow looked at each other with a smile, and soon Ichigo was sleeping with a calm face, his usual scowl gone as his body was warmed by Grimmjow and Starrk which were cuddled up closely at both of his sides, functioning as his private cushions.

A short while later a sleepy and slightly sore Toshiro walked out of his bedroom and smiled at the scene displayed to him. He had never seen Ichigo sleep with such a peaceful expression, and with great care he snuck up into the bed, curling up on Ichigo's stomach in his caracal form. Ichigo's expression was replaced with a smile as he recognized the presence of his loved one in his sleep, and all 4 of them slept soundly and safe through the long night, the servants wisely keeping out of the room until their respective masters called for them.

* * *

**Smut and cuddle chapter, along with some background information on poor Toshiro. Hope you enjoyed it… Smut for the big guys will eventually come, be patient my dear readers XD**

**Feedback is what inspires me to keep on writing, so any reviews are very much appreciated ;)**


	6. Joy and Despair

**Joy and Despair**

The sound of gravel and sand being crushed by heavy hooves was heard as a horse with fur like onyx made its way along narrow hill paths. On its back sat a figure that was gradually becoming more known to the people, his orange hair catching the light of the sun as it danced with the wind. The few traveling salesmen that passed him on their way looked at the beautiful man with awe and bowed deeply, the ever so rare female individuals blushing slightly and waving their fans at him.

To be honest Ichigo didn't like all the attention, even though it was currently given to him by a small amount of random people. His mount snorted in a startled way as a hiss chimed through the air, coming to a halt without its riders orders. Ichigo 's usual scowl deepened slightly as he reached forward to try and see what it was that had spooked his loyal horse.

There on the scrawny path laid a rather large snake, its front parts raised high in a threatening way, fangs shown and dripping with a yellow fluid that couldn't be anything else but poison. Ichigo didn't recognize the type of snake, and so he couldn't be sure as to how deadly those fangs were so he gently massaged the tense muscles of his mount for a short while before swinging his agile body off of the horse.

The horse never moved, but it was still prancing nervously in front of the snake that was still hissing at it, an occasional stomp of a hood echoing down the steep sides of the hill. Ichigo looked around at the scarce vegetation, trying to find a branch with a fork like split to use as a means of removal of the snake. He forced his feet to battle the steep angled hill upwards to reach a branch that looked usable, and using the force of gravitation he easily snapped the rather tough branch of the small bush it grew from.

Ichigo slid down the side on his sandals and landed back on the small path with a thump that sent a small cloud of dust into the air. His sensitive ears caught the sound of horses approaching, and not caring to turn back and greet his escort company he moved forward to rid the path of the dangerous snake.

"Kurosaki-sama, why have we stopped?" The captain of the company asked.

"We have stopped because of this poisonous snake blocking our path; Madarame," Icihgo replied calmly. "I am going to remove it," he then continued approaching the snake carefully as it rose higher and spat at Ichigo.

Ichigo took a step back to avoid being hit by the poison, and proceeded to lower his stance calmly moving forward again with the forked branch at the ready. The snake kept hissing and spitting, but Ichigo finally saw an opening and in one smift move he slid forward and drove the split branch down over the neck of the snake, just behind were the head attached to the body. The snake hissed viciously, its slim body coiling and curling as it struggled to get free.

"Sorry little serpent, but you're a danger to our mounts," Ichigo said as he kept the snake pinned, his hand reaching down grabbing the snake at the point where head met body. Ichigo rose to his feet before mouthing a sorry to the snake, before he threw it out over the steep side of the hill and down into the river alley below.

Ichigo let out a sigh of relief before he went over to his still agitated horse and leaned in to touch foreheads with it, his calm and brown eyes locking with obsidian ones.

"It's ok now Nero," he soothed and rubbed small circles at what would be the horse's temples, the horse immediately relaxing its previously tense muscles and blowing a warm wind into Ichigo's face from its nostrils as a manner of thanks.

"That's a good boy," Ichigo smiled before returning the blow through his mouth and moved back to Nero's side easily mounting the horse in one swing. Ichigo had been given this horse on his choice, and in only one week they were so deeply connected that it seemed impossible to certain bystanders. Ichigo had fallen for the fierce and wild beauty of the slightly cocky young stallion, and he had been told he had a good eye.

The horse was supposedly bred in a faraway country, and the breed was given the name Frieser from the local's. Nero was a lot sturdier than the cavalry horses and had a heavier blood, indicating the cold blood that went through his veins. The proud and loyal mount was a horse Ichigo could depend on, and he treasured the stallion. He tensed his thighs and put a light pressure to signal his mount forward and Nero lashed out with his hind legs in joy of being on the move again, Ichigo laughing at how energetic the young mount was all of a sudden. Behind Madarame grumbled as he tried to calm his mare, whom had been startled by the onyx' stallions sudden kick. He sighed before he spurred his horse and the rest of his company forward after the enchanting orangette whom had such a pure yet darkened aura about him. Neither of the guard company knew where they were headed, but Ichigo knew all too well.

Though he had never been to the destination he was now heading for, his instincts easily told him which way to choose and follow, his heart playing a big role in it as well. About a good hour later the party had taken a small break to drink and eat some nutrition filled dried crackers before they continued on, soon reaching a top from which they could glance out over a green landscape that stood in great contrast to the desert like environment they has spent the last 2 days riding through. In the horizon they could see the sun beginning to dive, and the silhouette of a large building revealed itself.

"Kurosaki-sama?" The slightly feminine voice belonging to Yumichika voiced at the orangette whom had been staring at that silhouette for quite a few minutes.

"Oh sorry, the house in the horizon. That is our destination," Ichigo said knowing his words were not lies, as he once more eyed that dark shape with hope filled eyes.

**...BMBD...**

"Kuchiki-sama! Kuchiki-sama!" A young woman shouted, her voice carried through the paper walls of the Kuchiki estate easily.

In a large study a raven haired man frowned, a vein popping out above his now twitching eyebrow. He sighed and let his hand ghost over the silver ornaments braided into his hair, his heirloom ring scratching lightly against it. 'What is it now?' The raven haired man thought as someone came barging in through the door, completely forgetting about the proper courtesy that should be used inside a fine home such as his.

"Yes Rukia?" He said with a cold tone towards his little sister, his emotionless grey eyes landing upon the petite frame of the latter.

The short woman bent over panting before she kneeled down and looked up at her nii-san.

"Excuse my loudness nii-sama, but I spotted a party of royal knights coming down the nearest hill," she said her eyes wide with excitement. At that the young feudal lord's eyes gained a slight shine at the seriousness of the King's people coming to his mansion.

"Quickly Rukia, have the servants line up in the greeting hall!" The tall raven ordered and Rukia nodded and hurried off to gather the workers of the estate. Byakuya had his personal assistant help him out of his regular attire and about 10 minutes after he was a sight to behold.

His new attire consisted of a traditional Kuchiki uniform. His lower half was covered in loosely fit hakama which were tucked into high tight fit toe split boots, a turquoise sash keeping the hakama up. The thighs of the hakama were covered with light leather amour, and the fabric had grey dragons of silver silk woven into them.

His torso sported a beautiful haori with long white sleeves, the shoulder and chest part partially covered under the same leather armor that adorned the matching hakama. The sleeves like the hakama had intricate silver silk dragons woven into the fabric. His hands sported covers that fastened below the wrist and around his middle finger, their color matching his sash without any decorations.

Byakuya pulled his hair up into a high ponytail, the hair kept up with a beautiful dragon clip made of silver. His ears sported beautiful earrings t

hat resembled dragon claws that were embedded by small obsidian diamonds. Finally the crown piece was a beautifully made Katana that was fastened at his left hip. It had a handle adorned with silver ornaments that were carved into the shape of a beautiful dragon head to provide him with luck and good fortune. The sheath was a glossy black with silver paintings and a full dragon formed from silver at the end, its serpent like body coiling up around the sheath.

Now that the Kuchiki Feudal Lord looked presentable he hurried outside to greet the royal company approaching his estate and he waited calmly as tension built up in the air. He was expecting Coyote Starrk the royal guard and messenger to show up, or the majesty himself, but instead he was met with a young man with striking orange hair and a soft yet slightly edged face. Not knowing what to make of the man leading the party Byakuya decided to welcome the royal party and introduce himself.

"Welcome servants of King Jaegerjaquez! Welcome to the Kuchiki estate. I am the Feudal Lord of this region, and my name is Kuchiki Byakuya. May I offer you my hospitality for the evening?"

**...BMBD...**

Ichigo demounted his horse in one swift moment, his hakama dancing in the wind as he gave a formal smile at the beautiful Feudal Lord that greeted him. He stepped forward and bowed respectfully for the Kuchiki clan member, which obviously pleased the raven haired male.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Kurosaki Ichigo, private assistant and close friend of his majesty King Jaegerjaquez. I will gladly accept your offer Kuchiki-sama," Ichigo said in the most formal tone he could muster, still struggling with the proper courtesy of someone serving under royalty.

"Allow me to show you inside, and I shall have a meal fitting of such company prepared. Your escorts may stay within the barracks belonging to my own soldiers," Byakuya informed motioning for Ichigo to follow him.

Ichigo gave a nod and followed the raven haired Feudal Lord to the most impressive gates that opened for them to enter. Ichigo soon found himself strolling after Kuchiki down on a tiled path, which was covered in petals from beautiful sakura trees that crowned the path. He had to admit the Kuchiki had excellent taste when it came to his garden, his mind awe stricken by the beauty of the mansion. When Ichigo finally entered the greeting hall he was met with the entire staff of the mansion, and they knelt in his presence by command of their master.

"During your stay you may choose one or two of my servants to assist you," Byakuya said sweeping his hand over the display of various men and women.

"I'll take you up on that offer," Ichigo responded out of pure courtesy to not offend his host. He gave a small flick off his hand and the servants quickly got to their feet.

Ichigo had no time to react when someone came flying in at him screaming "Ichi-nii! Effectively tackling him to the ground. Byakuya was startled by the servant that seemingly attacked his royal guest and immediately tried to pry her off of the orangette.

"Karin, what in the world do you think you are doing!" Byakuya shouted before Ichigo waved at him to stop.

"Ichi-nii!" Karin sobbed into Ichigo's haori, Ichigo squeezing the raven haired girl lightly before he grabbed her below her armpits and rose up.

"My you have grown Karin," Ichigo said dropping Karin onto her feet.

"I've missed you so much oniichan," Karin wailed and Ichigo gave her a bright smile.

"I have missed you too little sister," Ichigo said before his ear twitched slightly as someone shuffled their feet.

"Ichigooooo!" An all too familiar voice shouted as his dad came flying in attempting to kick him in his head.

Ichigo's eyebrow twitched and a vein popped as he excused himself to a really confused Feudal Lord. Ichigo stomped over to his old man whom had crashed into a wall and picked him up by a collar.

"What the hell old man, are you trying to kill me!" Ichigo shouted into his face holding his father into the air.

"I see your skills have not rusted, oh Masaki our son has grown into a fine young man!" Isshin sobbed as Ichigo let him go with a very annoyed **Tch. **

"Please excuse my otousan Kuchiki-sama, he has a screw loose," Ichigo explained with a chuckle and a hand behind his head.

"Well now Karin, would you like to be my assistant while I stay here?" Ichigo asked.

Karin bowed deeply and replied formally "It would be an honor to serve you Ichigo-sama." Ichigo smiled brightly at how proper his sister had become, though he could still see some of her cocky and brash attitude shining through her now formal one.

"Ahem," Byakuya coughed gaining Ichigo's attention.

"Oh how rude of me," Ichigo said and turned his attention to the raven once more. "This must be quite confusing yes? I'll explain it to you. This here is my little sister, and the one who ruined your wall just now is my, excuse the language, idiot father," Ichigo said in an effort to calm the clearly upset Feudal Lord.

"I see, I never knew they were the family of a royal servant," Byakuya said.

"Nii-sama!" A young girl called as she entered the greeting hall, shock playing over her face for a few seconds at the mess before she decided to ignore it. "Dinner is ready," she announced and Byakuya nodded waving at Ichigo for him to follow, Karin coming with him as his temporary servant.

During the meal Ichigo and Byakuya discussed his reasons for being sent there, and after the dinner the Kuchiki head was left with a written order signed by the King himself. He was supposed to eliminate the Feudal Lord of the east, the reason being that the latter had committed treason towards King Jaegerjaquez reign, having been found guilty of several charges.

One of them was including cruel and inhumane treatment of his servants, another one for neglecting his responsibilities concerning the wellbeing of the people living in his region. A third one was the crime of putting the money he earned from his reign in his own pocket, instead of giving half of it to the King so that he could use it for the better of the kingdom. The Feudal Lord of the west was ordered to be executed, and Byakuya kind of looked forward to do the task. He always despised the Feudal Lord of the east.

But Aizen Sousuke would not go down without a fight.

**...BMBD...**

"So where is Hitsugaya?" Karin asked looking at her brother with worried eyes. "He's fine isn't he? I swear if anything happened to him I will kill you nii-chan!" Karin growled. Ichigo laughed loudly and punched his sister friendly.

"Do not worry; he is safe and sound at the royal mansion. He's probably outside painting pictures of the gardens," Ichigo said with a smile. Karin brightened up a bit at that, but then she got serious again and her eyes locked on Ichigo's figure. Ichigo's face darkened at that and his expression saddened.

"Yuzu is fine Karin. She's at the Seiretei clinic, the head medic herself is personally taking care of her," Ichigo answered with a sad smile.

"Karin and Dad. I have something to tell you," Ichigo announced his voice wavering. He tried to summon himself but failed in his attempt.

"It's bad isn't it Ichi," Karin said her voice cracking.

"What happened son," Isshin said eyeing Ichigo seriously.

"I'll explain it from the beginning," Ichigo said his voice hitching slightly as he finally pulled himself together.

"It started while I was out to buy medicine for Yuzu. When I was on my way home I was attacked by a pack of Hyena's. I got my shoulder shredded and when Toshiro tried to help they caught him as a hostage. By coincidence King Jaegerjaquez and his companion Coyote Starrk where patrolling the area, and they stepped in and helped just before I was about to revert completely" Ichigo began.

Karin and Isshin made no move to interrupt and Ichigo continued, "Since I couldn't afford to see a medic about my wound, I forced myself to continue working at the farm I was employed at. I fainted out in the field, and once again by chance the King was out riding, this time without Starrk at his side. He picked me up and brought me to Seiretei and let me stay at the mansion. When I woke I was enraged and terrified of having left Yuzu and Toshiro behind," Ichigo continued taking a break to breathe in.

"I told them about Yuzu's condition and demanded they'd let me rush back. We mounted horses and hurried back to Karakura, and I found Toshiro heavily wounded on the floor after I killed off the two Hyenas' responsible in my reverted form. But the worst part was that they had injured poor Yuzu, she was barely alive when I…when I" Ichigo hitched and began sobbing.

"Ichigo, it's ok. It wasn't your fault," Isshin cooed cradling his now crying son in his arms.

"I was too late and she had a large gash down her side. She wasn't breathing and I immediately tried to revive her. God smiled on me because I managed to knock her back into life. Seconds after Starrk and Grimmjow arrived with a healing team, and they took Toshiro and Yuzu inside. Toshiro healed after a few weeks, but Retsu checked Yuzu over. She has healed from her wound, but…but…" Ichigo sobbed loudly again. Karin realized it first and she shrieked loudly before crawling into Ichigo's lap pounding at his chest.

"No! It's not true. It's not true Ichi you hear me?! It's not true!" She wailed. With that Ichigo broke completely and cradled Karin close as he cried with her, his dad hugging both of them as he too shared their pain and cried with his children and for his ill daughter

. "Retsu…She's the best medic in the entire country, concluded that…Yuzu will never recover and eventually die from the fever…I send her weekly doses of my blood which she makes medicine off, and I visit her as often as I can. But Retsu says she doesn't have much time left," Ichigo cried hugging Karin even closer as she sobbed silently into his haori.

"Ever since then I have lived with Toshiro in the royal estate," Ichigo finished.

The rest of the night the small family was allowed to mourn for their fourth member after Ichigo had explained the situation. Byakuya offering his condolences with true sorrow in his eyes, letting the family mourn in a private room he issued out to them. Ichigo stayed the night over, and was surprised to find that Byakuya had arranged for his father and sister to be moved to serve under Ichigo's master and he thanked Byakuya for that.

When noon arrived the party with Ichigo's family added and two other servants of the Kuchiki estate that would accompany the party left the estate and headed for the city of Seiretei. All three Kurosaki had a growing lump in their heart as they moved closer to Ichigo's new home, they knew something was wrong and therefore Ichigo hurried his party. When they were a few kilometers away from the city a dust cloud moved towards them with great speed. Ichigo knew who it was before he could even make out the figure, it was Starrk.

"Starrk, what's going on?!" Ichigo demanded to know.

"Ichigo!" Starrk panted, he had rushed over on the fastest mount available and now he looked at Ichigo with horror stricken eyes. "It's your little sister, she's dying!" He blurted out. Ichigo's eyes shrank ad he froze and shortly after let out a sorrowful roar as he jumped off his now agitated mount.

"Lead the way Ichigo!" He snarled, tears flowing out of his cheetah eyes following the black tear lines that naturally tainted their coat.

"Starrk, please make sure Karin gets there as fast as possible. She doesn't know how to revert!" Ichigo barked before he jumped of Nero and reverted to his heritage.

Starrk nodded and soon Ichigo's horse was carrying Starrk and Karin after the sprinting cheetah's who seemed to have an endless supply of stamina as they raced towards Seiretei, tears flowing from both father and son as they ran faster than they had ever done before.

At the clinic the blue haired King kneeled at the side of the small girl clenching her small hand inside his, as he waited for her brother anxiously.

"I'm so sorry Ichigo," he whispered as a tear escaped his eye.

* * *

**Cliffhanger I know. Sorry but I like torturing you too much :'( So yeah, Ichigo reunites with his dad and little sister, and when they are returning he learns that his second sister is dying. What will happen? Stay tuned for the next chapter.**

**Reviews are my inspiration and motivation source, so please leave one for me ;)**


	7. Her passing, their grief

**Her passing, their despair**

Madarame had been on guard when he saw that big cloud of dust racing towards them, but he had been utterly shocked when the dust settled to reveal a clearly agitated Starrk. Everything had gone by so quick, only one sentence had been picked up.

"_It's your sister, she's dying!" _

Madarame never got the time to summon himself as the servant they had brought from the Feudal Lord wailed out loudly before jumping off of his now spooked mount, snarling at the Kings assistant to lead the way. He had seen how the orangette tensed and froze, before he snapped out of it at the dark haired servants command and immediately jumped off of his horse which nickered worriedly when its master disappeared.

He had been even more shocked when the servant and Ichigo transformed and took the form of full-fledged cheetahs, Ichigo barking a short order to Starrk whom only nodded not bothering that he had been ordered by someone of a lower rank. Next thing he knew he was racing his party after the one they were escorting, not able to keep up with the incredibly fast cheetahs that ran in the lead, loud meows and whimpers escaping their maws for every step they took.

He didn't quite grasp what was going on, but when he got a glance at the young girl they had brought along and saw her tears and determined look as she clenched her hand around Starrk's waist while they rushed past his own mount on the black Friesian named Nero. What confused him the most was the fact that his superior Starrk was obviously crying along with the raven hared girl as he hurried after the King's newfound personal assistant.

Madarame shook his head in confusion as he spurred his mare forward, doing his best to keep up with Starrk figuring that it would be best for him to stick close.

**...BMBD...**

"Out of the way!" Starrk shouted from the top of his lungs for the umpteenth time during the short amount of it that had been sued to enter the city.

Women shrieked and children shouted out in surprise when two cheetahs ran through the street making the dust fly in the air as their claws dug down on the tiled streets of Seiretei. Some of the kids giggled in excitement tugging at their moms.

"Look mom, a cheetah!" They squealed before their mothers brushed them off and hurried them away from the street.

Ichigo meowed loudly in worry, his father joining as they locked their claws to skid around another corner. Ichigo was faster than his father, but his father hung at his tail as Ichigo finally recognized the building he was looking for, Starrk and Madarame with their company flipping the corner seconds after.

Ichigo found new strength and his leaps increased by half a meter as he stretched and bent his spine like a spring to increase his speed, his father mimicking his young son. Ichigo sped up the marble stairs to the clinic and broke through the guards whom didn't recognize him since he was still reverted. Ichigo only growled a **let me through** at them and forced his way through, his father following suit.

Ichigo had been inside the clinic so many times, he had memorized the path to Yuzu's room easily and he darted down the main hall for about 30 meters, before skidding to the left down a side corridor. Then he took another left into a decorated hallway and began morphing back to his human form, not even completely done as he barged through the paper thin door and into Yuzu's room, freezing up at the display.

There on a heightened futon laid Yuzu, obviously struggling to breathe and every now and then coughing up blood onto a cloth that had been tucked around her neck so that her clothes would not be soiled. A petite hand ran a damp cloth over Yuzu's forehead, long black hair resting over the shoulders of Retsu as she cared for the dying girl.

Ichigo didn't fail to notice the slightly sobbing form of the King himself, sitting at Yuzu's left side clenching her small palm in his own gently, his cyan eyes swirling with sorrow as tears silently flooded down his face making him look as vulnerable as one could get, as if he was the one whom was losing his little sister. Ichigo knew that Grimmjow had been visiting Yuzu regularly, but he never thought the King would cry for her and accompany her on her death bed.

Ichigo cried out a loud **NO** as reality finally struck him, forcing him to realize his little sister was actually dying. Ichigo had tried to deny it, tried to convince himself it wasn't true but the truth was here right in front of his eyes. He turned horror stricken eyes to meet with Retsu's sad ones, as she gave him a shake of her head confirming it once again for him. Isshin had come up on Ichigo's side and he made a weird sound from deep within his throat before he brushed past his paralyzed son and knelt at Yuzu's side.

Grimmjow looked at the man that knelt down, expecting it to be Ichigo but instead he saw an older man with black spiky hair and visible stubble on his edged face. He knew immediately that it would be Ichigo's father and he silently rose to make space, Isshin not even noticing that the man rose and stepped away.

Moments later Ichigo had made his way over on wobbling feet and dropped down to his knees on Yuzu's right side, his whole frame shaking and twitching as he sobbed loudly, his large hand cradling Yuzu's smaller in his own as he was finally reunited with his sister to guide her as she walked the path of death.

Grimmjow went to join Retsu whom had wisely retreated to the far corner of the room offering the grieving family some privacy. Both she and Grimmjow jumped slightly in surprise when a young female voice reached through the door screaming **YUZU!** The body of a raven haired girl barging into the room seconds later. Karin stopped immediately when she saw her nii-chan and her otousan kneeling by the shivering frame of her twin sister.

"No…no…no…no…" Karin repeated the word as a mantra as she scooted over to the futon and dropped down by Yuzu's head. "Don't do this to me…Please…Yuzu…" Karin wailed, tears flowing onto the floor as she eyed her sister whom still tried to fight the disease with fangs and claws.

"K…K-Karin?" Yuzu wheezed out in her state of half consciousness and Karin sobbed loudly as she bent her forehead down to rest on the fever ridden skin of Yuzu's own forehead. To the bystanders it was now obvious who the raven hair girl was, the resemblance was unmistakable. The ravenette was the twin sister of the dying girl.

"I swear to god…I'll…I'll fucking…" Karin sobbed. "I'll fucking!" she shouted and banged her fist into the wooden floor. A small chuckle was heard through the room as Yuzu regained more of her consciousness.

"I know…you'll k-kill me…f-for gi…giving up," Yuzu wheezed out, a small smile tugging at her lips.

"Yuzu!" Karin shrieked and dropped down to hug her twin, her body shaking with heavy sobs.

"I'm s-sorry…everyone…I…I… t-tried…" Yuzu forced out before her smile disappeared and she fainted again.

With that both Isshin and Ichigo finally released the wave and their sobbing was replaced by heart wrenching cries and rivers of tears, as Yuzu's lithe body reverted into a complete cheetah, her small form still twitching and shivering with the burning fever.

Ichigo meowed as he too reverted and stepped up on the futon, his tear marks accompanied by the real deal as he laid down and curled up around his dying little sister, Isshin soon joining curling up behind his son and daughter. Karin not knowing how to revert, simply walked up to them on wobbly feet and snuggled down somewhere between Ichigo and Yuzu, her tears staining Ichigo's golden fur.

Ichigo and Isshin began purring lowly in an attempt to comfort the dying cub while tears flowed down through the silken fur in their faces, Isshin laying his chin over Ichigo's shoulder blades. Ichigo stretched his neck and nuzzled his own muzzle under Yuzu's chin, his purring sending calming vibrations through his little sisters body and she obviously relaxed more as the pain shot through her in waves, her breath hitching and wheezing as the battle for oxygen became harder by each second that passed.

Grimmjow was so extremely tempted to revert into his panther form and lay down to curl around all four cheetahs in a protective manner, but with a heavy heart he turned the idea down and left the family to guide their young into heaven and he settled for watching the family silently together with Unohana.

Unbeknownst to them the same loyal servant that had sketched the cuddle pile of Ichigo, Starrk, Grimmjow and Toshiro earlier was sitting just outside the room and drew the sad scene, forever encasing it on the papyrus scroll before he shoved it underneath his yukata, tears in his eyes as he left the grieving family.

He was nearly knocked over when a small figure brushed past him and ran into the room, the usually ice cold voice of the caracal faltering as he watched the family. Starrk came in just after, and once again he broke out in tears at the display sinking down to the floor a few feet away from the snuggling cheetahs.

Grimmjow noting the presence of his longtime friend gave out a pained whimper as he scooted over to Starrk for comfort. He doubted he would ever know just how much pain Ichigo and his family was in, but his own heart felt like had been pierced through with a screw which was being twisted around. Though this was only partly because of the dying girl, the wrenching of his heart was caused more by how miserable Ichigo looked, how tormented his half lidded eyes were and how obvious the fact that he was in deep pain was.

He sought comfort in his old companion whom was grieving just as much as he was, and dumped heavily back into the grasp of the canine, Starrk cradling his agitated friend and king close burying his head in the blue locks as he cried together with Grimmjow. Grimmjow was about to reach out to pull the shaking caracal into his lap, but Toshiro shot forward and crawled up to Ichigo.

He turned feral and whimpered as he crawled up to rest between Ichigo and Isshin's backs, his own tears joining the still flooding river created by the grieving family. Retsu could tell Yuzu's end was near and she retreated out of the room, and seconds after the loud combination of one mournful howl and five mournful yowls shook the walls of the entire clinic as the family along with the King and his guard let their grieving shouts be known to the outside world as Yuzu finally let go of life and wandered off in her search for peace.

**...BMBD...**

The sound of wind chimes played through the ears of all the people clad in black. A party consisting of Ichigo, Isshin and Karin in the front, followed by Grimmjow, Starrk and Toshiro behind trailed after the four men carrying the chest in which Yuzu rested peacefully made its way down the road, random citizens that wanted to witness the funeral following behind in their own black clothing.

Ichigo and Isshin displayed faces deprived of emotion, while a sobbing Karin desperately wanted to cling to Toshiro for comfort. Toshiro was silent; his eyes downcast as he walked between Grimmjow and Starrk, both royalties had their heads bent down in respect as the mourning party made their way through dense rain towards the royal shrine.

In the very front the Feudal Lord of the north, Kuchiki Byakuya walked, a ceremonial burial staff held high between his hands as he watched over the grieving family that walked behind the coffin carriers. He had gotten words of the death of Kurosaki's younger sister two days ago and he felt the need to be present at the burial.

During Ichigo's short stay the Kuchiki leader had taken a liking to the orangette, and a small amount of respect was in order as well so he felt a strong need to be there to show his care and support.

When they finally arrived, the city bells of Seiretei rang nine times as the carriers lowered Yuzu's chest down into the prepared grave. A monk said some mantras and prayers out loud before blessing the chest, seconds later giving a sign that told the carriers to fill the grave. When the grave was filled and the gravestone rose; the clouds broke and the sun cast its light on the ground.

Its rays bathed a young sakura tree with its life giving light, and the mourning family watched with tears staining their faces as small sakura petals covered the grave when the wind placed them there. They bowed in front of the grave before they turned their backs and went back into the town, finding shelter from the still falling rain in the large royal mansion.

When they came inside Isshin was escorted together with Karin and Toshiro to new private quarters that had been assigned to them, while Grimmjow and Starrk escorted Ichigo to the King quarters with care.

As soon as they entered Ichigo finally broke down and Grimmjow caught his lithe frame before he could hit the marble floor. Ichigo was limp in his arms, his whole frame shivering and twitching as silent sobs tormented his body for god knows how many times during the last 4 days after Yuzu's death.

"Yuzu…she's gone…dead…gone…it's my fault…" Ichigo sobbed loudly and Grimmjow winced at those words.

He picked Ichigo up bridal style, Ichigo's head limply falling inwards to rest at his chest as he moved towards the large heightened futon he had, Starrk following suit with worry written all over his body. Both of the elder men cradled Ichigo between them nuzzling each side of his neck as they tried to calm the agitated cheetah.

"Shhh Ichigo…don't blame yourself…" Grimmjow cooed as he licked tentatively at Ichigo's neck now knowing how to calm his assistant down.

"No one could have prevented it Ichigo," Starrk followed up mimicking Grimmjow's action feeling how tense those muscles were under his tongue.

"You don't understand, if I hadn't let her be injured like that then maybe…just maybe…she would have…lived just a little bit…longer…" Ichigo wailed clinging to both Grimmjow and Starrk.

"Maybe we don't understand," Starrk began.

"But we know it could never have been your fault," Grimmjow ended as he licked Ichigo up his throat in a loving manner.

Seeing the one person he truly loved so sad and broken tore his core to pieces, and he wanted nothing more than for the cheetah to be happy again, Starrk being no different.

"Still…I could have saved her…" Ichigo continued, bluntly refusing to stop blaming himself.

"Ichigo…just stop it…" Grimmjow began.

"Seeing you like this…blaming yourself…"Starrk followed up,

"It tears us apart," Grimmjow ended.

Ichigo stopped sobbing for a short moment as he looked into worried grey and cyan eyes. He managed to pull a sad smile of comfort to the elder men before he hugged both of them close.

"Thanks, thanks both of you," Ichigo cried before sinking deeper into their embrace as he cried until he was dry and then some more, finally falling asleep reverting without his own consent.

Watching Ichigo sleep with that sad expression in his cheetah features was killing Grimmjow. Starrk fell asleep just as quickly as Ichigo, nuzzling the cheetah's head lovingly. Unbeknowst to the sleeping indivudals, Grimmjow shed a heavy tear and his breath hitched._ "If only I hadn't taken him here that day..." _he whispered into the cold air of the room, his fist clenching the sheets below them as he struggled to keep himself from roaring loud in agony.

Any bystander would soon have witnessed the display of a large black panther curling up around the lithe cheetah, with a large giant brown wolf curling around the latter from another angle, both canine and feline trying to protect the smaller mourning creature as they watched Ichigo like hawks through the sorrow filled night.

Later in the night they were joined by the Isshin, Karin and Toshiro whom had demanded to be let in so that they could support their grieving brother who obviously struggled hardest of them all to accept their sisters downfall.

The following morning Ichigo woke to a gigantic cuddle pile consisting of one wolf, one panther, two cheetahs, one caracal and one human girl. He smiled drowsily and sadly at the pile before snuggling down into the comforting warmth again, his tormented mind craving that he sleep even more.

* * *

**Sad chapter I know. I just enjoy driving a dagger through your hearts and then twisting it around XD Well yeah, this was to let Yuzu leave the story, and to let Ichigo build a closer connection with Starrk and Grimmjow, and also to reunite Ichigo with what's left of his family on a permanent basis. Hope you enjoyed the read and cried a few tears ;)**

**So right now Grimmjow is breaking apart. Behind the scenes he's actually blaming himself for Yuzu's death, for having taken Ichigo to Seiretei without knowing how Yuzu's condition was, leading to Ichigo coming to late to save his family from the Hyena attack that day.**

**Reviews are my source of motivation and inspiration, so be sure to leave one :D**


	8. Two new additions

**The addition of two**

Grimmjow snarled loudly in frustration and anger, smashing his fist into the wall. His once beautiful face portrayed dark bags under his eyes, the once white sclera red as he kept crying without stop. His fists were marred with small cuts, the once white walls of his bedroom now stained with crimson red over large areas.

Grimmjow despised himself; he was the cause for Ichigo's pain. He had begun to wish that he never met the cheetah, because then he wouldn't have ended up hurting the beautiful man like he did. He took the pain and anger out on himself, tormenting his body in a hopeless attempt to inflict the same pain on himself, which he had made his Ichigo go through.

Grimmjow was broken, he hated himself and just wanted to crawl into a ditch and die. If only he hadn't picked Ichigo up from that field, if only he hadn't holed Ichigo up in his home. If he had left Ichigo alone, then maybe, just maybe Yuzu wouldn't have been hurt. Then maybe she would have lived a tiny bit longer, even just a day would have made him happy.

He roared again and banged his head into the wall, his knees giving in as he slid down. He crouched on the floor, screaming as he banged his hands into the marble stones. Silent sobs shook his body as he kept letting out his pain in wrenching yowls and screams, his tears flooding the floor. He didn't even notice that someone slid the door to his room open; he didn't even flinch when warmth pressed down on his shoulder.

"Grimmjow," Starrk called. Starrk couldn't see Grimmjow's face; he hadn't walked around to stand in front of his old companion.

After Starrk had called his name a few more times, Grimmjow finally heard him and broke down. He began sobbing and crying uncontrollably. Starrk hated seeing Grimmjow like this, so vulnerable, so ridden with pain and guilt. Grimmjow was supposed to be standing tall and proud, with that familiar fire in his eyes. Starrk knelt down to the floor and dragged Grimmjow into his embrace, digging his face into those messy blue locks of hair as he cradled his friend close.

"It wasn't your fault Grimm. How in the world could you possibly know that Hyena's would attack Ichigo's home as soon as he was gone? You need to stop blaming yourself for Yuzu's death," Starrk soothed in an effort to calm down his agitated and painfully obviously hurting friend.

"No, it's my fault!" Grimmjow shouted, his fists clenching around Starrk's hands that rested on his hips. "I'll do anything to escape the guilt; I'd do anything to make it go away. I'd do anything to make amends for robbing Ichigo of his little sister," he cried loudly. "Please Starrk, help me make it go away. Take me until I'm senseless, I'm begging you!" Grimmjow cried looking up into those grey eyes with his own pleading cyan ones.

"Grimmjow, you know I can't do that," Starrk resisted.

"Please Starrk, just do it!" Grimmjow cried out once more with that pleading voice.

Starrk looked into Grimmjow's eyes; they were begging him, begging him to make his pain go away. Starrk's heart throbbed at the sight. He and Grimmjow had shared pleasure a number of times before, but that was when they were young and curious. They didn't love each other like that; they were just really close friends. When they had matured they had agreed to stop sharing such intimacy, and now Starrk was hesitant about breaking that promise. Grimmjow was begging him to be taken, and those eyes went straight through his core. He sighed and hugged Grimmjow tightly, tears escaping his eyes as he began caressing his King.

"Please Starrk, make it hurt!" Grimmjow pleaded, making Starrk wince and look away for a bit.

He swallowed harshly and screwed his eyes shut at what he was about to do. He snarled loudly as he bit down onto Grimmjow's neck ruthlessly, Grimmjow yowling out at the rough treatment. Starrk lapped up the blood seeping from the torn neck before he raked his claws down Grimmjow's torso, leaving faint red marks that were deep enough at some points to draw blood. Grimmjow whimpered in pain at his administrations and Starrk was about to give up trying to treat him roughly but once again that same heart wrenching plea escaped Grimmjow's mouth.

"It's ok Starrk, please make it hurt as much as possible…" Grimmjow cried, yowling out in pain as Starrk's hands clenched around his chest without doubt breaking one or two ribs in the process.

Grimmjow cried out, tears escaping his eyes as his skin quickly bruised and his breath began hitching. Starrk couldn't help the small whine that escaped him, but luckily Grimmjow didn't notice. Starrk continued his act and snarled in dominance as he graced his teeth down and tore the hakama covering Grimmjow to shreds. He nipped harshly at Grimmjow's sacks, before brutally shoving two of his clawed fingers inside Grimmjow making the blue haired King arch his back and yowl in pain.

Grimmjow cried loudly at the pain as his insides were torn slightly from the offending intrusion, and he whimpered as he realized he would receive nothing but pain, like he had asked for. Starrk didn't prepare him any further, and Grimmjow nearly fainted due to the jolts of pain tormenting his spine that came from Starrk thrusting his member into Grimmjow's unprepared entrance.

Grimmjow whimpered loudly when Starrk began thrusting into him violently, coating his member in blood from Grimmjow's torn anus. Starrk kept up the pace until he finally broke, not being able to hurt his old friend anymore. He pulled out with a whimper, looking at the now half-conscious Grimmjow with pained eyes.

"I'm so sorry Grimmjow," he cried before carrying the now fainted panther into the bathroom, cleaning him up and taking care of Grimmjow's wounds, before curling up together with the blue haired beauty on the bed, snuggling around the exhausted Grimmjow in a protective manner.

_**1 week later**_

Ichigo was still grieving, and his family now left him alone. Even Toshiro hadn't been able to reach through to the hurting cheetah and he was climbing the walls in an attempt to find out what to do about the situation. No one had seen either Grimmjow or Ichigo for days, and work had been piling up on Grimmjow's side.

Starrk was completely blank as well, and he had tried to approach Ichigo, only to be met by a snarl and gleaming fangs as an answer to his pleas. Whenever someone tried to approach either one they would be harshly rejected, both men buried in their own sorrows.

Grimmjow seemed to have begun taking the situation a bit better though, as Starrk was let into his quarters from time to time, now refusing to give Grimmjow what he wanted. Ichigo however blankly shut the door in people's faces, or didn't even bother to answer it.

But unbeknownst to them, Ichigo had already begun to accept Yuzu's death. The bigger thing that was biting away at him now was why Grimmjow hadn't talked to or seen him even once since the funeral seven days ago. Grimmjow was strong, he had a will of fire and though Ichigo didn't know so himself he yearned for that safe cliff to rest his exhausted body on.

Starrk was a good substitute, but he wasn't as strong willed as his blue haired friend. Ichigo loved both of them, he had realized so quite some time ago but he was still trying to figure out why.

His family thought Ichigo was grieving, and that was part of the truth, but he was also killing himself thinking he had done something to upset his blue haired savior. No one knew what to do, and with a sight Starrk rose to his feet with a yawn.

His eyes got a firm and decided glow to them as he finally realized that it had to stop before either of the men destroyed themselves. He decided to rip Ichigo full first and strode down the halls to his room, Ichigo's family and Toshiro watching with curious eyes at the sudden movement of the guardian.

**...BMBD...**

Ichigo's ears twitched as the faint knocking sound on the paper door to his room.

"Go away!" he called weakly, but the knocking continued. "Go away!" he said again, trying to add more strength than in the last.

"I won't go away this time Ichigo!" Starrk answered with a demanding voice.

"Please Starrk, just leave me alone," Ichigo replied weakly.

"No Ichigo. If you don't let me in then I'm going to invite myself," Starrk threatened.

"Starrk?" Ichigo called with a curious tone to his voice, what was that cling to the canine's voice? Did he hear worry and upset in it? Or was it just his imagination? Ichigo sighed before he got up to his feet and slinked over to the door, sliding it open slowly.

"What?" Ichigo asked looking mildly annoyed to the wolf.

"Holy shit, you look like hell!" Starrk exclaimed as he grabbed Ichigo's shoulders with worry now brimming in his eyes. "What the hell did you do to yourself!" He asked, latching onto Ichigo afraid he would drop to the floor of he let go.

"Sorry you have to see me in such a miserable state," Ichigo apologized.

"Iie Ichigo, you don't need to apologize" Starrk said with a sad smile as he guided the cheetah over to the large and messy heightened futon. "Sorry," Ichigo said again as Starrk's worried eyes landed on him again.

"I told you to stop apologizing," Starrk replied. "Sorry," Ichigo said again and looked down at his hands.

"Stop that!" Starrk shouted in a fit of frustration. Ichigo looked at him with mildly scared eyes before he dropped his head down again, hanging his shoulders low. "Sorry Ichigo, I didn't mean to yell," Starrk said quickly as he saw how dejected the auburn haired cheetah suddenly looked. Starrk dragged Ichigo into hug and nuzzled the creak of his neck lovingly, giving a small lick to calm the cheetah down.

Ichigo purred slightly at the caress and leaned back into Starrk's warm embrace. Starrk cradled Ichigo close and opted for resting his head on the lean man's shoulder.

"Seriously Ichigo, have you been eating at all?" Starrk asked with concern in his voice when he saw how transparent his skin had become.

"Not much to be honest. Just a cracker every now and then plus water," Ichigo replied, not able to lie to the honest man which was cradling him.

"Baka-ka, Ichigo," Starrk chuckled, letting his hands slide down Ichigo's bare torso to rest on his hips, the orangette shivering slightly at the light touch. "Ichigo you need to stop holing yourself up in here. Everyone is worried sick about you at the moment. What's bothering you?" Starrk asked, thinking he knew what the answer would be. Well, he was partly right, so he found out when Ichigo replied.

"I'm sorry for making you worry. I still can't manage completely coming to terms with Yuzu's departure," Ichigo began with a small sob.

"I know that Ichigo, but keeping yourself away from your loved ones only screws the dagger further in," Starrk said having one of his wise moments again. Ichigo smiled slightly at the philosophic like words that the wolf spoke before he continued.

"I know Starrk. There's one more problem," Ichigo confessed. Starrk cocked an eyebrow and looked at Ichigo. "Grimmjow won't talk to me or see me, I think I've done something to upset him," Ichigo continued, a drop of salt water threatening to escape his eye. Starrk was about to laugh at that but kept his cool.

"Ichigo, you've done nothing to upset Grimmjow," Starrk said.

"Then why doesn't he come see me or talk to me like usual?" Ichigo asked with pleading eyes.

"Because Grimmjow is hurting," Starrk said, a strike of sadness adding onto his voice for that sentence.

"What! Why's he hurting, is he injured?!" Ichigo shouted flailing slightly in Starrk's hold.

"Calm down Ichigo… No he's not injured. He's hurting himself mentally," Starrk explained. Ichigo looked at the man with the wavy brown hair with concerned and confused eyes, Starrk sighing sadly. "Grimmjow's blaming himself for your sister's death. He's tormenting himself for picking you up that day, giving the Hyena's the chance they waited for," Starrk said and clenched Ichigo's chest painfully.

Ichigo squinted at the pain and gave off a slight whine, Starrk immediately releasing his hold.

"But why, why would he blame himself for that, he couldn't have known," Ichigo said with a sob.

"He's blocked out all reason. When he saw you crying and in pain, he began loathing himself for what happened," Starrk said, sadness now clearly there in his voice.

"That idiot" Ichigo cried with a tear stricken voice as he began realizing that he had caused Grimmjow pain. "Now I've caused him pain because I was bathing in my own self-pity… Oh Grimm…" Ichigo sobbed dropping his face into his hands, while his body began shivering.

"Shhh…it's okay Ichigo, it's okay…" Starrk cooed.

"No it's not!" Ichigo shouted as he began crying again.

His crying was cut short however when he felt his head being tilted back, his lips sealed by Starrk's, the canine gently mapping out his mouth as Ichigo allowed him entrance. Ichigo's tense body eased up as he forgot reality for a second as he drifted off into bliss by the kiss Starrk was giving him, and when they finally broke apart for air Ichigo looked up at the grey eyed man with dazzled eyes.

"Why did you do that?" Ichigo asked confused, his cheeks flushed a bright red when he realized what he had just done. Sure he had kissed Starrk before, but not in such an intimate and passionate way, it was so embarrassing.

"Because I wanted to, and to shut you up. Just go give him a piece of your mind Ichigo, only you can fix his broken mind," Starrk said giving Ichigo one of his adorable lazy smiles. Ichigo stood there frozen for a bit, before it dawned upon him.

With a smile of appreciation he hugged Starrk and pecked him on the lips before running off to Grimmjow's quarters.

**...BMBD...**

"Grimmjow, I'm coming in!" Ichigo shouted from the hallway.

"Go awa-" Grimmjow was cut short as the door slammed open as he was tackled to the floor.

Ichigo was straddling Grimmjow's lap now, fisting his hands into the top of the silk yukata Grimmjow was wearing.

"Baka-ka, why!" Ichigo cried dropping his head onto Grimmjow's chest.

"Ichi…go?" Grimmjow asked in shock. "What are you doing here? Leave!" Grimmjow shouted. Ichigo froze when Grimmjow said those words and he looked at Grimmjow with tear brimming eyes. "Just leave, you probably don't want to see my face anyway," Grimmjow said, dropping his eyes down, letting his head fall to the side on the cold marble floor.

"Grimmjow you big idiot!" Ichigo cried pounding at his chest, Grimmjow looking up into Ichigo's eyes with confusion. "Don't jump to conclusions like that, you stupid neko!" Ichigo shouted hitting Grimmjow in the chest again.

"Oof…What do you mean jumping to conclusions?" Grimmjow asked, clearly still not hooking on to what Ichigo was implying.

"How in the world could you let yourself believe I blamed you for all of this Grimm?" Ichigo sobbed, letting go of Grimmjow's yukata before dropping down and sneaking his hands around Grimmjow hugging him close, burying his head in that strong chest. "I would never do such a thing Grimm, you couldn't have known. I was a complete stranger to you at the time, please don't blame yourself anymore!" Ichigo cried with a pleading voice, clenching Grimmjow's ribs burying his nails into the tough skin.

Grimmjow was stunned, here Ichigo was, hugging him and crying into his chest. He would have expected Ichigo to behead him or something, torture him or scream and yell at him, not this. He hesitantly placed shaking hands around Ichigo, weakly returning the hug but not doing anything more.

"You really don't hate me?" Grimmjow asked, his cyan eyes shining with a small glimmer of hope as they met with Ichigo's chocolate ones.

"How could I ever hate you, Grimmjow you've made my life so much better, don't you understand?" Ichigo asked nuzzling Grimmjows neck, his tears moistening the fabric that covered it. "Knowing that you are hurting yourself because of me, it kills me Grimm," Ichigo cried. "Please stop torturing yourself," he pleaded looking into Grimmjow's eyes. Grimmjow couldn't believe it, Ichigo…was crying, for him?

"Ichigo?" Grimmjow said, confusion still there in his voice.

"How could I ever hate the man whom saved me from poverty, the man whom healed my injuries? The man whom gave me a safe roof to be under, the man whom brought my family back to me huh?!" Ichigo cried hugging Grimmjow close.

Grimmjow was silent for a moment, before the words finally sank in and he acted. With a loud whimper he hugged Ichigo flush to his chest, burying his face into the crook of Ichigo's neck, his rough tongue grazing over the pulse point tentatively in an effort to calm the agitated cheetah down. Ichigo went limp under the caress and soon purred at the touch, his nails scraping lightly against Grimmjow's tough skin.

"It's fine Grimmjow, it was never your fault. And I realized it wasn't mine either, god just doesn't smile to me that's all," Ichigo said with a sad smile directed at Grimmjow.

"Oh Ichigo, I'm so sorry," Grimmjow cried into his neck, tears staining his face.

"Don't cry Grimm, its ok," Ichigo soothed, nuzzling Grimmjow the same way the King nuzzled him, licking lovely at the nape of his neck, so that this time it was Grimmjow whom purred.

"You and Starrk, you've lit up my life," Ichigo said, his voice louder than before. Outside the door grey eyes widened, as keen wolf ears caught those words. "No matter what you or Starrk do, I could never hate you. And that's because I realize that I love you both, I have no idea why, I just do," Ichigo cried with a bright smile directed at Grimmjow, before he turned his head and looked at the door.

He soon found himself jumped by Starrk, and he laughed when Starrk licked his face gently before he snuggled up with Ichigo and Grimmjow on the floor. Starrk dragged Ichigo up into his lap and nuzzled his neck, nippin lightly at his earlobe before turning to nibble on the pit of his neck, making Ichigo relax into his grasp and purr lovingly.

Ichigo mewled when his head was turned and caught by Grimmjow's hands, the panther's full lips soon sealing his own. Ichigo felt his body catching fire and he began purring loudly as the King and his solider showed him just how much they cared.

"And we love you too," they purred in unison before they somehow found their way to the bed, a series of soft mewls and purrs following as Ichigo was showered with love.

Turquoise eyes caught a warm glow when he got a sneak peak at the busy bundle consisting of Starrk, Grimmjow and Ichigo. He had snuck after Starrk, wondering where he had gone and had heard his conversation with Ichigo. And he had heard the exchange between Ichigo and Grimmjow as well. When his attempts at cheering Ichigo up, he had figured out that it was not only Yuzu that was on Ichigo's mind, but someone else.

That someone mostly being Grimmjow, but Starrk as well. He knew that the wolf and the panther was what the cheetah needed, and he didn't mind at all. Ichigo still loved him just as much; he had just found two new people to pull into his life. Toshiro didn't mind sharing at all, Ichigo's kindness was something that should be shared with those whom earned it, and he couldn't deny the fact that Grimmjow and Starrk did so.

With a small smile tugging at his lips he scooted away from the room after sliding the open door close without so much as a sound, heading back to mingle with Karin and Isshin, and maybe to do some gardening in his and Ichigo's little paradise.

He made sure to tell the rest that Ichigo was ok, and that he would be busy for an unknown amount of time as he sat down to drink tea with his family, smirking inwardly when he strained his ears to catch the faint sounds of Ichigo's cute mewls from the King's quarters.

* * *

**Glossary: **

**Neko - **Means **Cat**

**Iie** - Means no in away...Like when someone blames themselves you say no, and then tell them it wasn't their fault. It can be used for other things as well.

**Baka/ Baka-ka - **Well, I think everybody nows it means **idiot XD**

* * *

**Do not worry the smut for the big guys will finally come in the next chapter ;) Yup, I hope you don't mind I had Starrk fuck Grimmjow. Since the characters are a bit OOC at some points I needed Grimmjow to show his feelings for Ichigo in an extreme way.**

**Remember that I've written before that Grimmjow didn't always use to be so caring and conscious of other people's needs. He was the arrogant and battle loving bastard we all know, until his late father died and a bullet of realization was shot into him. He still has some of his traits though, he is still quite arrogant, cocky, brash and dense XD **

**I would say Ichigo stayed IC this chapter if you look away from all the tears. Ichigo does cry throughout the anime, but he mostly shows his love through shouting, anger and physical contact XD Which is what he did with Grimmjow here lol. **

**Starrk is kinda hard to write, since he had barely any airtime in the anime I don't quite know how his personality is. But we all know that he is a lazy fuck, but that he steps up when it's needed, and that he is quite smart, calm and collected, while still showing love for his little Lilynette :p **

**Hope you liked this chapter!**

**Reviews are what inspire me to write, so please leave one :D **


	9. Declaration of war!

**Declaration of war!**

In the private quarters of his majesty King Jaegerjaques, all tears had been forgotten as the three men had moved to the large bed befitting of a King. Ichigo purred loudly when Starrk's hands slid up his body, his fingers ghosting his skin in a teasing manner which made Ichigo's heart skip a beat, all the while his neck was ravished by the blue haired devil, his skillful tongue trailing the line of his neck, nipping at his earlobe before sucking gently at his pulse point.

Ichigo gasped when Grimmjow's hands replaced Starrk's and began pinching one of his nipples, making it pop out eagerly. The gasp soon faded into a pleasured moan, as Starrk's tongue began circling the one that wasn't occupied by Grimmjow's hand and Ichigo squirmed beneath the two men, his skin beginning to shine with a thin layer of sweat as his breathing picked up, hitching every now and then when either Grimmjow or Starrk found a sensitive spot to torture him with.

Ichigo was in a daze, and didn't even notice that Starrk and Grimmjow switched positions, not before Starrk's brown wavy hair curled up on his forehead, as he leant down to catch Ichigo's lips with his own, delving deep into the warmth of that pleasurable cavern. Ichigo purred into the kiss when he felt Grimmjow's hands trailing down the sides of his ribs, coming to a rest on his hips where he massaged them gently before moving teasingly slow to ghost the inner of his thighs.

By now all three men had a major hard on, and Ichigo's neglected member stood proud in the air, pulsing beautifully as it awaited the one whom would satisfy its needs. This time Starrk was the one to ravish Ichigo's neckline, nibbling at his pulse point before letting his fangs graze the skin teasingly with a growl, making Ichigo mewl into his mouth when they kissed.

Ichigo jerked up with a meow when he felt Grimmjow finally touch his member, his rough finger sliding over the slit where pre-cum steadily flowed out. Grimmjow purred at Ichigo before he began massaging the head lightly with one hand, the other squeezing and tightening in a playful manner at Ichigo's hilt, making the cheetah release long and deep moans from his chest that had both him and Starrk growling in anticipation.

Ichigo groaned when Grimmjow's tongue took over for those massaging fingers, going through his slit and circling the edges of his head, all the while Starrk continued his pleasurable ravaging of his collarbone, neck and earlobe moving up for a heated kiss every now and then. Ichigo mewled loudly when his member was finally engulfed by Grimmjow's warm mouth, said man immediately using his sinful tongue to curl around and caress Ichigo's shaft while he moved up and down, leaving Ichigo to end up as a moaning mess.

The sounds that began escaping Ichigo's lips was a huge turn-on for both Starrk and Grimmjow, their sensitive ears picking up on the different tones and volumes Ichigo used, allowing them to tell when he thoroughly enjoyed or disliked what they were doing. Ichigo could feel that warm churning heat beginning to pulse near his groin, and he began curling his toes and fisting the sheets, the movement not passing the ears and eyes of Grimmjow whom easily realized the auburn haired man was close.

Ichigo groaned loudly when Grimmjow added more strength to his sucking, while swirling his tongue about even more, making Ichigo roll his eyes back as he came closer and closer to his release. Ichigo arched his back with a loud moan when he finally came, deep throating Grimmjow with the movement. Grimmjow growled around Ichigo's shaft as he swallowed the salty substance, and purred at Ichigo afterwards in approval before he released Ichigo's member and looked up at the panting orangette with his burning cyan eyes.

Ichigo looked down at Grimmjow with blissful eyes before his mouth was caught by Starrk again, Grimmjow feeling his own groin beginning to tighten painfully. He groaned lowly as he began stroking Ichigo lightly, the cheetah's now semi hard erection being slowly nudged into a new full hard on, as Grimmjow prepared him for round two.

Using his own pre-cum Grimmjow coated his fingers with the slick substance and began circling Ichigo's entrance lightly; his irises shrinking when he noticed the way Ichigo tensed up every time he came a little too close. Realizing that Ichigo was a uke virgin he began erupting comforting and reassuring sounds from deep within his chest, the guttural sounds working to calm the cheetah down as the tense muscles relaxed allowing for Grimmjow to try again.

Grimmjow gently slid a finger inside Ichigo, waiting for a minute to let the auburn eyed cheetah adjust to the unfamiliar presence. When he heard a guttural sound coming from Ichigo he knew he could proceed, and he began moving the finger in wave like motions, lightly rubbing Ichigo's insides, before he gently added another finger, scissoring them and stretching Ichigo to prepare him.

Ichigo's attention was kept occupied by Starrk whom had moved to caress his torso and massage his back as Grimmjow worked his magic down below. Ichigo felt a little uncomfortable by the small stings of pain Grimmjow's fingers caused him, but it wasn't an unbearable feeling. He moaned when Grimmjow's finger ghosted over something inside him that made his spine tingle with a pleasant sensation, and Grimmjow knew he had found that little bundle he had been searching for.

Brushing past that spot a couple of times made Ichigo mewl out softly at the pleasure, and cyan eyes lit up as the cheetah finally loosened up, signaling he was ready for his soon to be mate number one. Grimmjow growled in approval as he repositioned himself, coating his member with pre-cum before gently spreading Ichigo's legs wider.

Ichigo took a deep breath and did his best to relax, as he felt Grimmjow's member lingering in front of his entrance. He arched his back with a loud yowl as pain ripped through his entire body, and tortured his spine when Grimmjow sheathed himself inside Ichigo. Ichigo let out small whimpers, and a few tears escaped his eyes at the immense pain the bluenette's size caused him. Grimmjow too whimpered slightly at the pained sounds his lover made, and he held still while purring to calm Ichigo down.

"Shhh" he purred "It'll get better, I promise" he soothed, and after a few minutes he finally felt Ichigo's muscles relax around him.

He pulled back slowly before thrusting into the warm heat gently, making the cheetah gasp at the pain which was still greater than the pleasure. Grimmjow continued to thrust gently into Ichigo, allowing for the cheetah to adjust a bit more, before he finally put more strength into the thrusts coming closer to the orangette's prostate with everyone.

Ichigo's face was still marred by a look of discomfort until Grimmjow made a quick and hard thrust into him, finally hitting his sweet spot which made Ichigo arch his back into Grimmjow's thrust with a loud yowl of pleasure. The bluenette flashed a toothy grin at Starrk, continuing to purr at Ichigo while he increased the speed of his thrusts.

Ichigo was left to moan, groan and purr in pleasure as the pain was subdued and he was pushed into ecstasy, instinctively begging to tense and relax his muscles to further increase the pleasure for both himself and the cyan eyed devil. Grimmjow groaned loudly when he felt Ichigo squeezing him intentionally, and he growled seductively as he increased the strength of his thrusts along with the speed once more, now ramming Ichigo's prostate.

Ichigo's breath was hitching and coming in a fast pace, as his torso was caressed by Starrk, while his bottom was abused by the blue haired King, making his body writher and squirm from the nearly unbearable amount of pleasure. He managed to keep in control to his own surprise, and he could hear Starrk's grunts of frustration, and he smirked when he reached out a shaking hand to grab Starrk's throbbing member.

Starrk whined out in surprise when he felt a pressure being applied to his painful erection, and looked down to see tanned fingers around his member. Looking up at Ichigo's face, he saw a devious smirk on the orangette's face, and he moaned loudly when Ichigo moved his hand up in a teasing stroke.

Ichigo mewled loudly when his prostate was hit hard, and he flexed his torso so that he could bring his face to Starrk's groin, immediately burying his shaft inside his own mouth, making the brown haired man growl out loudly in pleasure. Grimmjow felt his dick throb hard at the sight of Ichigo moaning around Starrk's shaft, and he began pounding even harder into the tight heat.

By now all three men were moaning messes as they finished each other off, Grimmjow soon reaching out for Ichigo's neglected member. All of them growled out loudly when they finally felt their release, Ichigo coating Grimmjow's hand with warm cum, while he felt his insides being painted by Grimmjow's release, swallowing Starrk's down his own throat at the same time.

All of them fell limply back into strange positions as they rode out their orgasms, and panted heavily, their bodies now ridden with sweat. Surprisingly Ichigo was the first one to recover, and he crawled over to Starrk on shaky limbs, having decided it was Starrk's turn to make him go crazy. Ichigo grabbed Starrk's semi erect member and stroked it until it once again stood proud.

Starrk looked at Ichigo with confused eyes before he saw Ichigo using some of his own-precum to coat his fingers, half expecting Ichigo to come onto him. Instead Ichigo reached behind him and began preparing himself in the same way Grimmjow had done, moaning at the pleasurable feeling he caused himself before he engulfed Starrk's member with his mouth.

Grimmjow had crawled up behind Ichigo and was now nibbling at his neck, massaging Ichigo's shoulders as the orangette pleased his subordinate. When Ichigo finally felt ready he repositioned himself and smirked deviously at Starrk, placing his hands on Starrk's belly for support as he slowly sank himself down on Starrk's throbbing erection, fully sheathing the wolf inside him.

Ichigo purred out at the sensations the new positions brought him, enjoying the feeling of how far in Starrk got. Starrk groaned loudly when Ichigo raised himself up before falling down hard, and watched as Ichigo bit his lip in the most sensual way imaginable as he began riding him. While Ichigo rode his soldier, Grimmjow snuck his hands around Ichigo to grab at his nipples, while his rough tongue ravished his neck, and Ichigo was once again double teamed, increasing his pleasure to the max as he increased the speed in which he impaled himself on Starrk with.

Soon enough Ichigo felt the fire beginning to pool into his groin, and he could see Starrk's abdominal muscles beginning to tense, and with a few more well placed sheathings they both came moaning out each other's names in pleasure, Ichigo falling back into Grimmjow's chest.

A while after they had rode out the last of their orgasms, Ichigo on wobbly feet made his way to Grimmjow's closed of garden with his two companions, practically running towards the rather large pond that was there, diving head first into the water.

He sighed as the water soothed his burning muscles, and began cleaning himself off together with the blue haired devil, and the grey eyed guardian. Half an hour after they had all dried off, just in time to make their way to Grimmjow's private dining room where Ichigo's family including Toushiro, were waiting for them, the latter eyeing Ichigo with a smug face, making Ichigo blush slightly as he sat down at Grimmjow's left side, Starrk dropping down at Grimmjow's right.

**...BMBD...**

Byakuya lifted his hand into the air, and slowly let it fall and didn't flinch the slightest when a rain of arrows whistled above his head, the wind flowing through his hair as all the guards around the Feudal Lord of the east's mansion were skillfully assassinated in the dark of the night. The only sounds allowed to escape the soldiers, were the muffled gurgles created by the blood that filled their throats as their throats were impaled by hooked arrows, their bodies falling with a thud to the wooden floor of the guard towers.

Byakuya was satisfied when he got several small blinks of light from the archers around the mansion, signaling that the guards had been successfully disposed of, and he made a sign to the rest of the small force he had with him and began moving forward on his black mount, his own being covered in black clothing effectively allowing him to merge with the darkness he rode through.

He steadily moved his mount down the small ridge and approached the now unguarded front gate with care, the guards inside having no idea that their fellow tower guards were drowning in their own blood. Byakuya swiftly demounted his horse and skid soundlessly across the gravel that was neatly evened out in front of the gate, his company waiting a couple of meters behind as Byakuya fearlessly took the lead.

Byakuya grinned inwardly as his hand waved for the men carrying the ram to break the door. Surprised shouts rang through the cold night air as a horde of men broke through the large doors of the mansion, the guards inside barely having time to grab their swords as they were assaulted by the enemy forces.

One by one the men fall, and in the midst of battle the Kuchiki clan leader walked gracefully on a path of blood, between walls of dying men opening the door of the mansion silently as he slid inside like a snake. He moved about silently, his feet seemingly not touching the wooden floor as he navigated down the hallways.

He had been to Sousuke's estate a couple of times before, based on formality only and he knew the halls well due to his photographic memory, so finding the Eastern Lord's chambers was an easy job for him.

He snuck up on the door, expecting the man to be on the high alert as he slid the door open silently. His eyes were already adjusted to the dark and he quickly swept the room not finding his target anywhere. However he did see tracks in the light layer of dust that led out the window and he instantly knew the man had fled.

He ran outside and grabbed his mount, trotting to the window where the lord had escaped through and began tracing the tracks in the faint light that was beginning to rise as dawn arrived. He squinted down at the tracks and spurred his mount into a gallop, and soon the tracks of a human turned into that of a horse, indicating that somehow a horse had been waiting for the Lord's arrival.

He scoffed angrily and with an enraged snarl that was out of character for the Lord he turned his horse around and sped back to the mansion. Somehow the bastard had known about the secret assault that had been planned, and Byakuya had his suspicions confirmed now. There was a traitor in his household, and he had a pretty good idea whom it was.

He enrolled the company on the situation, and took the lead as they began the 1 day trip back to his own estate. When he arrived back home he was met with horrified servants whom rushed to him panic clear in their voice. His most trusted man, a part of his own family was the first to reach him and he was obviously shaken. For his own brother in law, Kaien Shiba to be shaken meant something was really wrong.

"What happened Shiba?" He asked, still not dropping formalities even while it seemed to be a crisis.

With that question Byakuya noticed that what could be nothing more than a tear was rolling down Kaien's face, and he felt his heart drop at the sad expression in the raven haired man's face.

"They got her, they killed my Rukia!" He shouted as he dropped to his knees infront of Byakuya.

With that Byakuya's body froce, his horse shifting slightly under its master as Byakuya wavered. Somehow that bastard Sousuke had gotten wind of his planned assault, and had set up his own counter assault, robbing Byakuya of the most precious thing in his life. A person that was more important than his own existence, title and position, his little sister whom was the only thing he had left after his wife died.

With an enraged roar Byakuya cried out into the air, his soldiers confused about the situation but they too were stunned into tears when they heard the Feudal Lords sister had been murdered while they were away.

It took Byakuya half an hour of just sitting on the horse, before he finally pulled himself together and got of the horse with a desperate attempt to keep his stone faced mask. He motioned for Kaien to show the way, and he was led to Rukia's bedroom.

The sight that met him was horrible, the whole floor was covered in blood and on the wall painted in Rukia's blood was a clear declaration of war. Rukia's body hung coldly on the wall, her arms out to the side pierced through their palms, her feet pierced in the same way to the wall. It looked like she had been crucified like the European religion was prone to do, the only change being the stake through her heart like she had been some sort of heathen vampire or something. It was obvious she had been crucified while she was still alive, the stake through her heart having been impaled through her last.

Byakuya felt himself fuming, and his rage pushed away his grief as he harshly commanded some of his most loyal servants to clean up the mess and ready Rukia for a proper burial. He strode off to his room and sat down, drawing out a scroll of papyrus from his desk and wrote down a message. He then had his secretary duplicate the message and made 2 riders ride out with one scroll each, with the order of riding without stop until the messages had been delivered. He was requesting assistance from the two remaining Feudal Lords and the King himself, hoping that they too would act upon this crime and treason and help him completely rid the country off the heathen Sousuke Aizen.

**...BMBD...**

Ichigo was out in the front reception garden of the royal mansion doing some people watching, when he heard frightened shouts of women down the streets whom moved out of the way for a rider that was obviously pushing his horse to the limits. Ichigo scowled as he tried to make out whom the quickly approaching rider could be, and when the rider came close enough he could recognize the emblem of the Kuchiki branded into the horse's shoulder.

Ichigo approached the messenger whom came running towards him with serious eyes, and the robes Ichigo was wearing told the messenger that he could safely deliver the scroll to the orange haired man.

"Message for his majesty King Jaegerjaquez, it's an emergency!" the messenger panted out, as he bent down into a kneeling position offering the scroll to Ichigo.

Ichigo's brows furrowed as he tore the seal, knowing if it was an urgent message from Kuchiki himself it needed to be looked over at once. Ichigo had been granted permission as the King's personal assistant to read his letters and Ichigo read the text, his face turning into that of anger.

"Luppi! Orihime!" Ichigo shouted out, his high frequency voice reaching the servants no matter how far away they were. Minutes after Orihime and Luppi were standing in front of him.

"Luppi, take this man's horse and make sure it gets the care and food it needs. Orihime, show this messenger to a fitting room and make sure to bring him a new set of clothes and some food!" Ichigo ordered, and watched as the servants started their task without even addressing Ichigo, they only nodded and did as they were told.

Ichigo immediately turned and strode into the palace, shouting an **out of my way!** To anyone that was unfortunate enough to be in the halls, that including Ichigo's father and little sister. They looked after Ichigo with curious stares, wondering what had their orange haired family member so upset as he strode down the halls at great speed. Grimmjow and Starrk looked up as Ichigo barged into Grimmjow's personal office.

Grimmjow smiled and said "Ichigo, what brings you here in such a hurry?" Ichigo snarled and slammed the scroll down onto Grimmjow'd desk.

"Read, it's an emergency. Kuchiki is requesting our assistance in a war against the previous Eastern Feudal Lord Sousuke Aizen," Ichigo snarled.

Grimmjow's face immediately turned into that of a scowl as he and Starrk read the scroll together. When Ichigo saw them finishing he spoke.

"Apparently Aizen somehow managed to get hold of Byakuya's orders to assassinate him and fled the mansion before they even arrived. When Byakuya returned home the bastard had murdered his younger sister," Ichigo snarled, obviously enraged with the situation.

He had been to the Kuchiki mansion a couple of times after his first visit, and he and Byakuya had built a fairly strong bond between eachother. Ichigo considered Byakuya a friend, and he was eager to kill the bastard whom had harmed the Kuchiki Lord.

"This is serious business," Starrk exclaimed.

A few minutes of silence followed as they observed Grimmjow thinking.

"Prepare my troops for war, and send my messengers out to any Lord with troops to spare. This is an official act of treason, and that man is a sly bastard. He has an impressive army of his own, and we need all the fire power we can get!" Grimmjow growled, slamming his fist into the desk before he raced out of the office to spread the word around and prepare for war.

"So I guess this is war?" Ichigo said with a grin that certainly did not fit him, as his whole body began filling with adrenaline and excitement. Ichigo was no newborn infant when it came to fighting, no in truth he knew the harsh reality of fighting all too well, his body covered in scars he refused to explain for Starrk, Grimmjow or even Toushiro. Starrk was kind of creeped out by the all too excited grin on Ichigo's features, as Ichigo too made his way out of the office to prepare. He was going to participate in the war, and no one would stop him.

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**Smut, smut, smut, oh lovely smut! XD Anyway, finally some action between the three big guys :p Hope you liked the smut scene, and some action on the newly created war front as well. I mentioned Byakuya's order of assassination on Aizen in a previous chapter, and I had planned back then that it would lead to an important twist in the plot XD Sorry that I killed Rukia, to be honest she's one of my least favored character in Bleach. I find her utterly annoying and weak, but in the end I have to admit she's far better than Orihime e.e **

**Reviews are what keeps me going, so please leave one!**


	10. Part of their soul

**Part of their soul**

_Endless cries of pain was all that filled the cold evening air of the Rukongai. Young cubs opened their mouth to let out their cries of pain, as they were assaulted by their peers. Child after child fell as they ruthlessly killed each other to survive, and get just the tiniest scrap of food as a reward. _

_The battle arena was crowded by adults cheering and holding money in their hands as they shouted threats to the one they had placed their bet on. Brown eyes watched from inside their cage, watched as another one of his kinsmen fell to the claws of a pure bred canine soul. _

_He snarled loudly when one of the guards went past his cage, tugging at the restraining collar and chains that were clamped down on his feet, hands and around his throat. The guard merely grinned in response, kicking some dust into his eyes before continuing down the small street of caged children that were waiting for their death. _

_The brown eyed child's body didn't react as the dying cry of another child broke through the air, and his eyes flashed golden as he realized his turn was next, however he never expected to be facing anything else than one of those pureblooded souls. Standing in front of him was one which he had believed to be dead, someone very dear to him._

_ Permanent golden eyes looked back at him, white fur gleaming in the faint light that was cast on the arena, the light shunning the black spots in the child's fur. There in front of him stood his very own twin brother, whom had been exiled for his strange appearance. _

_He had of course objected to his twin's exile, and he had fought with teeth and claws for his brother to stay in the family but it had failed. He had nearly killed himself in the attempt to follow his brother, and he had been imprisoned by his own parents for a few days until his brother was safely gone. Now here he was, put up to fight his own brother to the death, how ironic. _

_The crowd watched as the young cheetah was pinned to the ground, long white canines clamping down on the scruff of his neck hard enough to pierce the skin. He let out a pained cry as his body was forced down to the ground. He never failed to notice those warm wet tears that left trails in his golden fur as his brother pinned him down. __He was crying for his younger twin, whom found himself mercilessly in the others fangs._

_ When he heard the command to kill, something snapped inside of him. It was like all life was drained from him, as his mind went completely numb. The slightly revolting feeling of smelly drool dripping from his fangs reached his nose, as he slowly lost what little grip he had left on his own mind. When the light was completely blocked out, he snapped completely. _

_Seconds later the white albino laid torn on the ground, half dead as his brother had completely reverted to an animalistic beast, its mind set on survival only. If survival meant killing his own brother then the beast would do it. _

_The albino knew, he knew that his brother did not want this and he had already forgiven his golden counterpart as he felt his energy drain. When he was finally rendered completely unable to fight, his brother finally regained his mind and woke up from his instinctual driven trance._

_ He watched his brother kneel down at his own pale side, digging his head into his stained fur with silent sobs. He smiled as he veered back to his human form and reached lean fingers up to cup the still feline head of his younger twin. _

_"S'okay Ichigo, ya didn' mean tah," he said with a smile, the echoing voice from his throat seeming divine to the crowd whom heard it for the first time. He had never spoken, not even once since he had been caught and forced into battle after battle. But he had never anticipated that Ichigo would fall into the hands of the same criminals, not while their parents were still alive._

_ When he finally felt his consciousness slip, he gave Ichigo a final warm thought as he realized he was dying, or so he thought. The last thing he heard was Ichigo crying out his name loudly, veering back into his human form, cradling his own limp body into his arms while tipping his own head back as his name was cried out from between those lips._

_ "Shiro!" Ichigo cried out loudly as he cradled the albino close to him, being struck with ironic rain right there and then. _

**...BMBD...**

Ichigo looked at himself in the mirror with an approving smile. He shifted his arms and feet, and tried a few battle stances and moves to test out his new outfit. In secret he had made an appointment with the royal armor tailor, and he was now admiring the custom made battle attire he wore.

His lithe built body was crowned with a tailed version of a haori, which was black as obsidian on the outside, while red as crimson blood on the inside, with slightly torn edges. It was completely closed over his chest, and did not open up until the beginning of his waistline, its arms snuggly fitted but not restraining at all.

His feet were fitted with loose obsidian hakama, which allowed him to move freely. He wore a white sash that was just barely visible underneath his top, and entwined into it was the scabbard of an excellent Katana which he had bought with the salary he earned for working as Grimmjow's personal assistant.

Beneath the clothing was something he had ordered to be custom made, and it was a one of a kind item. His body was covered in light metal rings that functioned as an armor, which only covered his most vital parts. His clothing was crowned by thick leather armor on the outside, which in turn hid plates of steel inside them creating a thick and tough hive that gave him protection.

He grinned at himself once more, before he stripped himself of the armor, and donned one of his more formal outfits that befitted a royal servant as he decided to go out for a stroll. He was used to wearing his rather extravagant royal clothing wherever he went, so it didn't bother him as much having to go out in such clothing.

His feet took him down the stone pavement of the main street of Seiretei, people bowing their head in respect or greeting him with smiles, some even halting him for a quick chat. In the short time Ichigo had lived in the large city, he had become a known and welcomed figure, the people welcoming him with warm hands. He finished a quick chat with one of the shop keepers and turned to continue his little stroll down the street.

He eyed his surroundings calmly, and his posture was relaxed as he moved further down. Then his eyes caught something that disturbed the normal picture that was the town of Seiretei. From a side alley, a limp hand just barely presented itself to his eyes and his usual scowl deepened. He jogged up to check if the person owning the arm was alright, and what he saw was no less than horrifying.

Ichigo didn't vomit, nor did he become nauseous at the gory sight. He knelt by the body of the dead man, noticing the shaggy clothing that he wore. He was definitely not a citizen of Seiretei. Had he been one he would have worn much finer clothing.

He eyed the body of the man, and the cause of death was easy to find. His throat had been clawed out by something that couldn't be anything but hooked feline claws. He dipped his finger into the blood, and the blood warmed his finger. This man had died nothing short of an hour ago, and his face was marred by a serious frown as he tried to come up with different scenarios.

The most likely scenario was that he had been a burglar trying his luck with one of the noblemen, most likely getting his ass kicked. Ichigo was so deep into his musings that he did not notice the shifting steps that approached him from behind.

He gave of a pained grunt when he was slammed head first into the clay wall of the nearest building, and he could feel a moist liquid running down the side of his head, indicating his skin had been broken. He groaned slightly at the pain before taking in the hooded person in front of him. He snarled lowly, increasing the strength of his soul's presence, forcing the assaulter to release the grip on his throat.

Ichigo coughed a couple of times, dodging a well-aimed kick that was heading for his solar plexus. He snarled louder this time and made a move of his own, as he sent his palm straight into the middle of the man's chest with incredible force.

The attacker groaned loudly in pain as he coughed up a bit of blood, before he bared his fangs and lunged for Ichigo. The punch hit as Ichigo slipped on the pavement, rendered unable to dodge it in his moment of unbalance. Ichigo gave a small grunt of pain when the fist connected to his gut, and he crouched slightly before lunging forward.

The man readied himself, but did not expect Ichigo's next move. Like an acrobat Ichigo sprung into the air and did a front flip over the hooded figure's face, landing behind him and quickly delivering a single but strong kick which sent the man forward. When he got up Ichigo was there at the ready, and with the side of his palm he hit a pressure point where the man's neck met the muscles topping his collar bone, and he watched as he fell limply to the ground, momentarily paralyzed.

Ichigo was panting slightly as he bent down to get a look at the attacker. He buried his head into the crook of his own neck with pure willpower, hiding his identity from Ichigo and snarled whenever Ichigo's hands attempted to touch his face.

"Don't touch me," he snarled and Ichigo's eyes widened. That voice sounded so familiar, it was like it echoed from several places at once.

"Hey now, I won't hurt you," Ichigo said, meaning it as well.

"Who tha 'ell don' hurt tha' one tha' tried to kill 'im?" he scoffed with a disbelieving voice.

"You're looking at him, well partially at least," Ichigo chuckled. "Now tell me, did you kill that poor bastard lying over there?" Ichigo asked, only receiving a nod from the man.

"Well, at least you're honest," Ichigo said, his voice serious again. "Now I want to know, why did you attack me?" He questioned the still paralyzed man.

"Cuz 'm broke, need tha money ya obviously have," he said. Ichigo arched an eyebrow at that.

"Who are you?" Ichigo asked, but received no answer. He scowled and reached forward again, but was to his surprise stopped by two pale hands.

"Don't ya dare touch me!" he snarled startling Ichigo to fall on his butt.

His assaulter had recovered rather quickly from being struck at a pressure point, which Ichigo realized. When he scrambled back to his feet he was surprised to be pinned to the wall yet again, he would have thought the man would run at the first given chance. This man's presence triggered something deep inside Ichigo, and it felt so familiar, like something he had lost a long time ago. Curiosity began to fill him, as he desperately wanted to see what was underneath that hood.

He had a vague memory of a man with a similar voice, and with much effort he managed to reach the hood of the man even though he was pinned hard to a wall. Surprising the culprit he yanked the hood off and instantly froze, his eyes wide open.

The man snarled when the hood was removed, but he quickly let that emotion go to be replaced by amused curiosity as he arched an eyebrow at the stunned noble which he so effortlessly pinned to the wall.

"Wha'sa matter, cat got yer tongue?" The man taunted.

"No way…It's not possible," Ichigo choked out.

"Wha' s'not possible?" The man asked with an irritated scoff.

"You," Ichigo said pointing a shaking finger at the man. "You're supposed to be dead!" he hitched.

"Stop ramblin' nonsense damn noble," he snarled and tightened his grip.

"I don't understand…I killed you with my very own hands…Shiro," Ichigo cried, tears running down his face.

When that name was spoken from the noble's mouth, the once hooded man stiffened. His eyes locked with the brown ones belonging to those of the noble, and for a moment he remembered a cry as he was on the verge of dying. An orange haired boy had cradled him while crying out his name, the young boy covered in fresh wounds and gashes, like his own shredded frame was. As realization dawned on him, his grip faltered and he stared blankly at the assumed noble in front of him.

"Otouto?" he hitched, his distorted voice echoing with emotion. Ichigo soon found himself cradled close to Shiro's chest, as recognition flashed through those inverted eyes. Ichigo could feel Shiro's body shaking, and he sobbed loudly as he returned the hug wholeheartedly.

"I thought I killed you," Ichigo cried as he fisted his hands into the ragged shirt his older twin wore, burying his face into that chest with the same musky scent that he remembered so well. "I'm so sorry Shiro," Ichigo wailed and clung even harder to the albino.

"Ichigo!" Shiro cried out as he buried his head in his brothers neck, drawing him closer if that was even possible. "Ichigo…Ichigo…Ichigo…" Shiro chanted as he tried to grasp the fact that he was cradling his younger twin, trying to convince himself that it wasn't a dream.

"I can't believe 's really you," his distorted voice called out as his hands instinctively reached up to run through orange locks to calm his agitated little brother down.

"Shiro!" Ichigo hitched again and continued his rather loud sobbing.

"Shhh…s'okay, everythin's okay Ichi. 'm here now, here fer ya. Everythin's alright otouto," Shiro soothed, the sobs leaving his body as reality struck him hard and his protective side reached out for his hurting counterpart.

"I thought you were dead," Ichigo whispered as his sobbing came to an end, and he looked up into those inverted eyes which he had missed so much. "Do you hate me Shi?" Ichigo asked with a sorrowful stare directed at his brother.

"Ya idiot! I'd nevah be able tah hate ya bakayaro. Wha' happened wasn't yer fault, they pushed ya to loose yerself like tha'. Dun blame yerself otouto, 'm alive ain' I?" Shiro argued and shook his younger twin gently.

Ichigo replied by hugging him tightly again, and Shiro didn't mind returning the gesture one bit. He had finally recovered the piece of his soul which was lost, and Ichigo's heart which had been lacking a crucial part was finally complete once again as the brothers stood there in a silent embrace, curious looks given by the few whom noticed them.

**...BMBD...**

"Ya really live 'ere?" Shiro asked with awe in his voice as Ichigo stopped him in front of large wrought iron gates.

"Yeah, it's a long story but I'll tell you soon enough Shi," Ichigo said, a curious glint in his eyes which Shiro noticed. Ichigo took a few steps forward and the guards immediately noticed him. Ichigo watched as they eyed Shiro with suspiciousness clear in their eyes and Ichigo's scowl deepened.

"I assure you, he will do no harm to his majesty. He is a person I trust with my life," Ichigo was quick to assure the guards and they shared a look before finally nodding.

"You may pass Kurosaki-sama," they said and pulled the heavy gates open.

"Sama?" Shiro mused and earned himself a glare from his auburn haired twin.

"Don't even mention it, I hate being called that," Ichigo complained as he guided Shiro through the gates. Upon arriving at the entrance path Orihime caught notice of her master and she immediately rushed over to his side.

"Kurosaki-kun, is there something you and your company might need?" she chirped making Ichigo want to rub his temples. Shiro could literally feel how Ichigo's fingers where itching to do just that, and he gave of a lilting chuckle which earned him a curious stare from the orange haired girl.

"No thanks Inoue, we'll be fine on our own. Dismissed," Ichigo said sharply and Shiro watched the hurt look in her eyes with amusement as she immediately left them. Ichigo sighed gratefully and nudged Shiro's arm as he began walking up to the impressive main doors.

The guards saluted him with a "Welcome home Kurosaki-sama," and pushed the doors open for Ichigo and his twin.

"Seriously Ichi, did ya become a King or somethin' while we were apart?" Shiro mused and earned himself a chuckle.

"Not quite, you'll see why soon enough," Ichigo answered before greeting a few of Grimmjow's advisors whom bowed their head in respect for him as they crossed paths.

Ichigo guided Shiro down the confusing halls of the royal estate, and soon Shiro found himself in a large room with marble floor and the most inviting futon he had ever seen. Ichigo didn't say anything, he just went straight across the room and slid the door to his walk in wardrobe and began rummaging through the attires he had.

He heard a satisfied groan and a thump and he smiled, realizing his counterpart had made himself comfortable on his heightened futon. He grinned when he walked out of the closet with an attire he believed would fit his twin's tastes and laughed when Shiro gave off a muffled yelp of surprise as the bundle of clothes were thrown straight into his face.

"Wha' was tha' for?" Shiro complained and glared at his otouto.

"You need to dress up if you're going to stay here for a couple of days, those were tailored for me so they should fit," Ichigo explained.

Shiro glared at him and held up the clothes with the eye of a critic. In his hands was a tight fit white west, with dragon themed embroidery which went up one side only of the piece. An approving glint appeared in his eyes as he went to the next part of the attire. A completely black diagonal cut skirt with golden linings matching his eyes was the next piece of clothing, and it too went into the approved section as he picked up the next piece.

It was a set of loose but now wide white trousers, which he instantly knew where to be tucked into the black leather shin high boots that laid at his side, and he grinned. Now this was clothing he could like, and he picked up a very beautiful hair ornament that laid at his fingertips. He eyed the golden dragon that curled around the hair pin which was meant to keep hair up, and he dragged the fingers of his other hand through his long ashen locks. He hummed as he coiled his hair up and put the pin in, keeping the hair in a loose ball which made it end up with a flowing tail to caress the now exposed part of his neck.

"You can change in the wardrobe," Ichigo said and watched with a happy smile as his brother went into the large wardrobe. When he came out Ichigo hummed with an appreciating tone and Shiro chuckled.

"See somethin' ya like Ichi?" He said and Ichigo grinned at him.

"You bet I do," Ichigo said with a smile, before hugging Shiro close again drawing in the musky scent which he remembered so well.

"Now that you are all dressed up, there's someone that I'd like you too meet," Ichigo said and guided Shiro out of the room. A few minutes later they found themselves at a nicely decorated door and Ichigo sighed, pulling the door open.

"Ichigooooooo!" His dad shouted while he came flying in to kick his soon, and Ichigo ducked with a groan. He immediately turned to pick his dad up by the collar of his haori and snarled into his face.

"Seriously, do you have to fucking try and kill me the second I walk through the door!" Ichigo hollered and threw his dad into the room.

Behind him Shiro had frozen as Ichigo ducked to avoid the incoming figure, and he was now staring at the black haired man whom tried to scramble to his feet from the heap he'd ended up in. Ichigo looked back at his twin and smiled a slightly sad smile, stepping to the side allowing his twin entrance to the room. Shiro took a few hesitant steps forward and called out shakily.

"D-dad?" his lilting voice sounded and Isshin's eyes went wide as that echoing voice reached his sensitive ears. This time he had no trouble getting to his feet and he immediately froze as he saw the pale figure of his shunned son in front of him. "Dad?" Shiro's uncertain voice called again and something seemed to snap inside Isshin.

"Shiro!" Isshin wailed as he ran over to the albino and hugged him close to his chest with a sob. "Shiro, my son!" Isshin cried and dug his face into the frozen albino's neck with a loud sob. Shiro stood there, embraced by his father not knowing how to respond. He glanced over at Ichigo whom only smiled with tears flowing down his face, and Shiro lifted shaky hands to return the hug.

"Otousan!" Shiro cried out, turning more emotional than he had ever been in his entire life as he clung to his beloved father with all of his might.

"My son, you've returned to me at last," Isshin sobbed and ended the hug to grab at Shiro's shoulders so that he could look at him. "Look at you," he said with a smile. "How much you've grown my son," Isshin said with pride eminent in his voice.

A minute later a door was shoved open and Karin entered her family's living space, and she immediately froze as she saw a pale figure being released from a hug by her father. She dropped the tray of food she had in her hands, which led to the attention being drawn to her. When she saw the inverted eyes and the ashen locks of the pale figure her face was stained with tears.

"Shiro-nii!" she wailed as she flung herself into the arms of the equally surprised Shiro whom hugged his little sister close.

"Karin!" Shiro cried and hugged his sister close. "I've missed you all so very much," Shiro cried and looked around finally realizing Yuzu wasn't there. Ichigo noticed his searching glance and he approached him and Karin with sorrow in his eyes.

"She's not here Shiro," Ichigo hitched.

"Whattaya mean she's not 'ere?" Shiro said with a disbelieving tone.

"Yuzu's walked through the white gates," Ichigo said as his eyes brimmed with more tears.

"No…No…No! She can't be, my lil' Yuzu would nevah give into tha' fevah!" Shiro cried out and pushed Karin off to grab Ichigo by his collar with a snarl.

Just at that moment Grimmjow and Starrk decided to walk in, Hitsugaya hanging limply around Grimmjow's neck in his caracal form, and Shiro soon found himself on the floor with a snarling blue haired man pinning him to the floor.

"Who the hell are you and what were you thinking of doing to Ichigo!" Grimmjow snarled into Shiro's face as the whole room went quiet.

_"Oh shit"_ Ichigo thought as he rushed over to help his brother.

* * *

**First of all, sorry for not updating in a while. The thing is, there's been a lot of stuff going on lately and I have been occupied with other stuff. You see, I had a full week of work at the elders home, and then I was invited to visit my aunt and uncle, so that I could celebrate my goddaughters birthday with them. Then my pregnant sister was rushed to the hospital the same day I took the bus to the city due to several reasons, and she gave birth at the city's hospital while I was staying there at my Uncle's place. I just got home today and decided to finish this chapter since I had already written a quarter of it before I left for the town, and I hope you can forgive me..**

**So a lot of emotion and drama in this chapter, I know… Anyways, I will probably start the war during the next or the 12****th**** chapter, and I am not sure as to how long it will end up to be. Hope you enjoyed the read ;)**

**Please Review, it is what helps me keep my inspiration up and going!**


	11. Preparing for war

**Preparing for war**

Ichigo was momentarily frozen when a certain blue haired royalty tackled an agitated Shiro freeing him from his grasp, but when he saw Grimmjow ready his fists for a well delivered punch he moved on instinct. He cried out Grimmjow's name as he himself tackled Grimmjow in the same way the latter had tackled Shiro and sent Grimmjow flying off a couple of meters to land in a confused heap on the marble floor.

"What the hell Ichigo!" Grimmjow snarled and quickly scrambled to his feet with a confused look, soon joined by Starrk and the newly awakened Toshiro whom veered back into his human form. Ichigo didn't answer, he just rushed over to the much to thin albino copy of himself whom was coughing and clenching his side where Grimmjow had collided with him.

"Oh my god Shiro I'm so sorry, are you okay?" Ichigo shouted as he knelt by Shiro and lifted him up into his arms.

"No I'm not okay ya idiot!" Shiro sobbed and his anger finally turned into grief as reality struck him hard, his body shaking with sobs as he buried his face into the crook of Ichigo's neck. Ichigo's tears soon joined Shiro's as he once again was forced to relive the pain he felt when Yuzu died, through the special link their minds shared.

"Shhh Shiro, I know…" Ichigo cooed as he let his fingers ghost down the pale neck of his brother in a comforting manner.

Grimmjow watched the odd scene and tried to move closer but was stopped by one of Isshin's strong arms and a low rumbling snarl and he eyed Ichigo's father with angry eyes. Starrk was as calm as ever, knowing he would get answers if he just waited.

"Shiro-nii!" Karin wailed as she ran over to her brothers and joined Ichigo in comforting their long lost brother, hugging him from behind and burying her lithe head in the pale crook of Shiro's own neck, crying together with him and Ichigo as they shared their pain. They stayed like that until Shiro finally went more or less silent and Ichigo breathed a deep sigh, as he lifted his head to rest his chin on top of Shiro's ashen hair.

"How'd she die?" Shiro finally said.

"She died embraced by everyone she ever loved but you," Ichigo said.

"She said she was sorry for giving in," Ichigo said with a hitch of his breath.

"Tha 's the Yuzu I knew," Shiro said with a sad chuckle.

"I could've saved her," Ichigo said his breath hitching again.

"Whaddaya mean ya could've saved her Ichi?" Shiro asked with confusion clear in his voice.

"Ichigo, her death wasn't your fault!" Karin piped in realizing Ichigo was going to tell Shiro about everything which happened before her twin sister died. Isshin took that as his cue to sit down with his two sons and his one daughter, and he placed two firm arms around both of his sons.

"You be quiet Ichigo…I'll tell him," Isshin said with a stern voice and smiled meekly as Ichigo moved to bury his head into the crook of his father's neck this time, sobbing quietly.

"You'll tell me what goat face?" Shiro asked and eyed his father with burning amber orbs.

"It's a long story, a sad one at that," Isshin muttered and drew his long lost son closer. "After our clan shunned you, the feudal lord of the east Aizen Sousuke, decided he'd rob us of our status," Isshin began. "He was ruthless, raided our home in search of Zangetsu, Engetsu and Mugetsu," Isshin continued. "And he got them as well, he murdered nearly everyone. Only I and your siblings survived," Isshin said taking a break as a tear threatened to escape him.

"Whaddaya mean only you, Karin, Yuzu and Ichi survived?" Shiro asked as fear began to pool in his stomach once again, the dreadful feeling only enforced when Ichigo's breath hitched fiercely along with a whimper from Karin.

"The bastard killed Masaki, killed her in cold blood," Isshin said with a voice that was barely a whisper.

"No! Not mom, not mom!" Shiro cried out, his distorted voice echoing even stronger as raw emotion painted its tunes.

"Shhh Shiro…" Isshin cooed and took a deep breath once Shiro settled down again.

"We lost everything; we were forced to change our last names to survive. We ended up in the poor edges of Karakura town, as our city soon fell into the worse state it has ever been in," Isshin said with a hushed tone. "That's when Yuzu fell ill with an incurable fever, and I and Ichigo began trying our best to earn enough for our little family to survive. Then Ichigo found Toshiro beaten and broken, and I allowed him to join our little family and he was a great addition. But it still was not enough, and then the fateful day when Lord Byakuya's henchmen came to collect new servants arrived. We were chosen and torn away from our family, and whenever we tried to send the money we earned to Ichigo the carriage delivering the money kept getting raided," Isshin continued. Now Shiro was beginning to see the bigger picture, and his hands clenched in fury, his own nails digging into the pale skin causing blood to spill.

"We managed for a few years, then I was attacked by Hyena's," Ichigo suddenly said deciding to ignore his father and take over from there. "This is my story to tell, not yours dad," Ichigo said, his voice firm as he had managed to collect himself. "There were four of them, and I killed one of them. Then Toshiro arrived and I was distracted, which led to me being caught along with Toshiro, they threatened to kill him if I didn't stop resisting. That's when I snapped again, like I did with you all those years ago. I only had ears for Toshiro's cried for help, and I was incredibly close to losing myself again. That's when Grimmjow interrupted and paralyzed me with his saliva," Ichigo continued.

"And Grimmjow would be?" Shiro said; a barely audible snarl in his voice.

"That would be me," Grimmjow said and stepped into Shiro's view. Shiro glared at him and snorted before returning his attention to Ichigo.

"After saving me and Toshiro, Grimmjow and Starrk," Ichigo said pointing to the latter, "left us and we continued to live our dreadful life, until I collapsed at work from the injuries I got from the battle," Ichigo continued before taking a short break. "By coincidence Grimmjow was out riding and he saw me and brought me here where he tended to me. When I woke up I had no idea where I was and when he told me I became enraged. After all he had brought me away from Yuzu and Toshiro leaving them unprotected and vulnerable to possible attempts on revenge from the Hyena's," Ichigo said his eyes going dark.

"I demanded to be taken home, but it was too late. By the time I arrived in Karakura the Hyena's had set fire upon our home, and I found Toshiro mauled and half dead, along with a not breathing Yuzu whom had a large gash across her chest. I immediately tried to resuscitate her and I succeded, Grimmjow and Starrk arrived a few minutes after me since I had abandoned my horse in favor of running on my own four feet to get there as quick as possible. They took Yuzu into a temporary medic tent that had been put up by the medic corps Grimmjow sent for while we hurried out of Seiretei, and one of the most prominent healers in the entire kingdom took care of Yuzu, no doubt saving her life as well as Toshiro's," Ichigo explained.

"After that I was allowed to move here, and since then Grimmjow has taken care of us. Yuzu was sent to a hospital which she stayed in and was cared for until she died, my own blood being the only medicine that could help her after her condition worsened due to the attack. I worked my way up in the ranks here in the castle, and while I was away on a visit to the Feudal Lord of the North, Kuchiki Byakuya with orders from Grimmjow Yuzu's condition worsened even more. To my surprise I found dad and Karin there, and when I prepared to leave they were allowed to come with me. When we were just a few kilometers away from Seiretei Starrk came riding towards us in a hurry, and then he told us that…that Yuzu was dying," Ichigo finished with a hitch of his breath. "We arrived in time to accompany her while she walked towards the white gates, and we never left her side until she crossed it," Isshin said and took over again.

"She was buried in the royal graveyard, Lord Kuchiki himself led the funeral," Isshin finished.

"I see," Shiro's distorted voice rang as he dragged Ichigo out of Isshin's hold and into his own as he cradled Ichigo's shivering frame close. A few silent tears escaped his inverted eyes at the horrible truths that had been told to him, and he hugged Ichigo close finding comfort in the warmth of his otouto.

"There is one thing I don't understand however. Why is it that you were able to become such an important person Ichigo?" Shiro asked.

"Because I and my loyal guard here fell in love with him after he had stayed here for a while. Allow me to introduce myself," Grimmjow said taking another step into Shiro's view. "My name is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, King of Pantera," he said straightening his posture with a slightly proud grin painting his face.

"And I am Coyote Starrk, captain commander of his majesty's army," Starrk introduced was obviously a bit shocked at the declaration of love towards his younger twin, but he was even more shocked at their titles.

"Well since we're already throwing titles around, you might want to know my title Shiro," Ichigo said with a warm smile and chuckle directed at Grimmjow and Starrk. "My name is Kurosaki, or should I say Shiba Ichigo, personal assistant of his royal majesty King Jaegerjaquez."

When that change of last name rang through Grimmjow's head and he finally realized where he knew the name Shiba from, he suddenly realized just who Isshin Kurosaki was and he drew a deep breath as he saw the pale man's face splitting into a grin. Shiro grinned and let out a low lilting laughter as he hugged Ichigo again before letting him go. Grimmjow broke the small moment of joy with a serious cough and eyed Isshin.

"Did Ichigo just call himself Shiba?" Grimmjow asked wanting conformation on his suspicions. Isshin looked at him with saddened eyes and let out a deep sigh.

"Allow me to introduce myself again my lord. I am Shiba Isshin, head of the late Shiba noble family and Ichigo, Shiro and Karin here are all my children," Isshin said and gave a slightly goofy grin at the king before retreating back into the warmth his children offered.

"So what you mean to say is that you are the last remaining people of one of the strongest noble clan, which was tasked with the duty of protecting Karakura town which so suddenly disappeared all those years ago?" Grimmjow said with slight awe in his voice, realizing how important the man whom had just presented himself to him really was.

With that Shiro, Ichigo, Karin and Isshin lined up with serious looks on their faces before answering in unison with a stern _Yes!_ leaving Toshiro whom had stood quietly on the sidelines to smile at the thought of his saviour finally having been reunited with the brother he had once spoken of, and now having the chance of maybe finally returning to his previous position.

**...BMBD...**

"So how exactly did you guys meet again?" Grimmjow asked as he eyed Shiro with slightly hostile eyes.

"Allow me tah answer tha'," Shiro said and grinned at Ichigo whom rolled his eyes in response and waved at him. "Put simply, I attacked 'im," Shiro chuckled.

"You what?" Grimmjow snarled and was about to lunge at him again but was held back by Starrk whom shook his head at him.

"See, I had jus' killed this pitiful burglar who tried tah rob me of money I didn' have, and then Ichi happen' tah see tha guy's dead arm from out 'n tha main street," Shiro said his eyes gleaming mischievously as he stared at Grimmjow.

"Since we've been apart fer years, I didn' recognize 'im what with all them noble clothing an' stuff," Shiro continued. "So I figured I could rob 'im tah get some cash, and I fought 'im. Even cornered 'im twice in tha process," Shiro said with a lilting laugh. "Then he did a nifty lil trick on me, left me paralyzed fer a second. Long enough fer 'im tah remove mah hood resultin' in 'im recognizing mah face," he finished.

"He babbled 'bout me bein' dead an' all, and I was confused till I finally recognized mah otouto," Shiro ended and smiled down at Ichigo whom was resting with his head on his lap. Starrk had listened carefully and a question rose in his mind, and he blurted it out without thinking.

"What did you mean by you being apart for several years?" he asked, Shiro turning to look at him with slightly sad eyes.

"I was forced to shun my own son away by the clan elders once he and Ichigo were born. They forced me to separate my beloved twin sons once Shiro was old enough to maybe fend for himself once left on the street," Isshin explained before Shiro could say anything.

"Wow, I would have figured the Shiba clan to be strict to protect their honor and what not, but to shun such a young child," Starrk muttered and shook his head in disbelief.

"It was only because he was born an albino," Ichigo said with a low snarl hidden beneath those words.

"I met Ichi once more before we split fer so long, sadly Ichi nearly killed me in tha' meeting," Shiro said taking over for his dad. "See, I was foun' by tha' bastard Aizen's henchmen jus' a few weeks aftah tha elders tossed me into tha street. They forced me tah become a fightin' machine, I was the only feline tha' managed to fend off against tha pure bred wolf cubs they put me up against," Shiro explained.

"Then Aizen killed our family and whilst we tried to live a life in poverty I got myself abducted one night when dad had to be away. I was taken to the same place Shi just told you about, and I was kept there for weeks because I too was able to take the wolves on," Ichigo continued from where Shiro stopped and looked at Grimmjow and Starrk when the painful memories returned.

"It was horrible, every night in that dusty cage I was forced to stay in my feline form whilst listening to the dying cries of street orphans which were put up against the experienced wolf cubs," Ichigo said snuggling deeper into Shiro's lap for comfort.

"Then tha fateful day came when Ichi and I were put against each other," Shiro snarled. "We fought, and I could see how it affected my twin otouto," Shiro continued, his lilting voice taking on a dark tone.

"Ichi was starved, wounded and worn out. He finally snapped undah' tha pressure of fightin' me an' he lost wha' lil grasp he 'ad left 'n sanity," Shiro said taking a sharp breath. "He let his rage 'n frustrations out 'n me, an' he nearly killed me. When I finally gave in an' lay shredded in 'is hands, he held me close an' cried," Shiro ended and grabbed Ichigo in a much similar way as they hugged each other.

"I'm so sorry Shi," Ichigo whisper and fisted his hands into the tight fabric of the white west he wore.

"Shhh…I told ya' s'okay," Shiro cooed and snuggled Ichigo close.

"I managed to escape a few days after that, I couldn't take it anymore," Ichigo said with a hitch and snuggled into his brother's embrace.

"An' I was tossed out on tha street once more like filthy garbage," Shiro said with a snarl. Grimmjow processed the information slowly and he frowned at how Ichigo and Shiro kept using the term purebred wolves. He featured a serious scowl and stared at Ichigo again.

"One more thing Ichigo, you and your brother kept repeating something about pure bred wolves, what did you mean by that?" Grimmjow asked with a stern voice. Both Ichigo and Shiro snarled loudly at that.

"They were one of Aizen's twisted creations," Ichigo said.

"Did you find anything out about them Ichigo?" Shiro asked with interest in his voice.

"Oh what didn't I find out. I've been doing research on the bastard ever since I gained a place here at the mansion," Ichigo said with a bitter voice.

"Aizen has kidnapped countless women over the years, and then he forced them to breed with pure animals. I didn't even know hybrids could breed with pure animals," Ichigo began.

"The result was incredibly strong cubs which he raised to be mindless fighting machines. The animal parts of their souls are dominant, and Aizen developed some twisted way of removing the human part of their soul completely. He tested them in those fights; I've fought so many of them. Their eyes were so void of emotion that they were downright terrible," Ichigo said with a loud snarl.

"It's so crazy I'm having trouble believing it," Starrk said.

"But sadly it is true," Isshin said with a sad shake of his head.

"I am going to participate in this war whether you like it or not Grimm," Ichigo said eyeing Grimmjow seriously. "Don't even think of trying to hold me back, I've already had armor and battle attires tailored for me, I am going to retrieve Zangetsu and Shiro will have his Mugetsu, and dad will have his Engetzu and together we'll rid the world of Sousuke Aizen," Ichigo said his eyes blazing as he stood from Shiro's lap.

"Hold on a second, I've heard those three names before. Who are these people you speak of?" Starrk said with a confused voice.

"They are not people, they are swords," Isshin said.

"Swords? Why in the world would you go through hell to get your hands on some family swords?" Grimmjow asked.

"Because they are the three sibling swords, which were forged by the ones whom made the truce with the animal kingdom. They hold incredible power, and only the Shiba clan can wield them," Isshin explained.

"Aizen murdered our entire clan just to get those swords into his position, no doubt in order to try and use their power to overtake the kingdom. My father tried to reveal him and his plans to your father whom was young at the time, but we didn't have sufficient evidence," Isshin finished.

"Then I guess it was a good thing I have called for his execution, with the gathered forces of the Pantera Kingdom it'll be an easy shot," Grimmjow explained.

"Do not be so confident, I am pretty sure he has aligned himself with King Barragan of the neighboring country of Hueco Mundo. I believe you should know that he has had a great interest in Pantera for a long time," Isshin said his voice stern.

"I am aware of that fact yes," Grimmjow said. "I finally gathered enough reasons to sentence him to his demise just a few weeks ago, the last drop being his murder of Kuchiki Byakuya's little sister Rukia," Grimmjow said.

"So he even went that far huh?" Isshin exclaimed.

"My troops are preparing for war, along with the three remaining Feudal Lord's army and now that I know of his alliance with Barragan, I believe it would be wise to request assistance from the Shihoin family. Their skills would no doubt be useful to penetrate their defenses and cause distortion among themselves," Grimmjow said.

"I believe you are right, but there are more options than just the Shihoin family," Isshin said. "If I do not remember completely wrong there is the Zaraki clan whom had their leader and his heir killed by Aizen for no good reason. The families that belong to that clan train their children to fight as soon as they can hold a weapon or use their arms," Isshin said. '

"That is true," Starrk mused.

"I'll go to them and request their help, their current leader is Zaraki Kenpachi if I'm not mistaken," Isshin said.

"No dad, let me go in your stead," Ichigo said. "I am of the age where I would have taken your position with the blessing of your elders, I believe I can call myself the new head of the Shiba clan now that we have a chance at rebuilding our home and branches," Ichigo said with a grin.

"Oh my darling Masaki, our son has grown so mature!" Isshin wailed after having stared at Ichigo with watery eyes. Ichigo groaned and hit his father square in the jaw sending him flying to the closest wall, Karin walking over him the next second just to rub it in.

"When will you learn to stop embarrassing yourself goat face," she said not even sparing a second thought to the sobbing mess her dad was at the moment. _Weird family,_ Grimmjow thought to himself at how they treated each other.

"You should be careful when approaching Zaraki Kenpachi though Ichigo," Starrk said. "He has a reputation for loving a good fight and he is rumoured to be a violent man," Grimmjow continued.

"Figures," Ichigo said.

"I'll go with you Ichi," Shiro piped up.

"No Shi, I want you to stay here and I'll have my tailor make you a battle attire matching of mine," Ichigo began, "It'll take me a week or so to find Zaraki, and in the meantime I want you to equip yourself with any weapon you find suitable. You also need to eat well and train, you are a bit thin," Ichig pointed out.

Shiro pouted at him but silently agreed to do as his little brother said and Ichigo hugged him. The next morning Ichigo was dressed and mounted on Nero ready to ride out in search of the legendary Zaraki Kenpachi, and he silently rode off with a group of four escorts early in the morning mist.

* * *

**So yet again, a back story chapter. It is needed don't you think? I hope you enjoyed and that you will follow me for the finishing chapters of the story. I am pretty sure there's going to be at least 5 more chapters, but I am not entirely sure as of yet.**

**Please review, your review is what gives me the courage and inspiration to continue writing ;)**


	12. The rave and the guard

**The Raven and the Guard**

Nero's heavy hooves hit the soft soil on the cleared path his master was guiding him along. Behind Ichigo and his mount his escorts followed suit though they kept a reasonable distance for the young man to have some privacy with his thoughts. Ichigo had been on the road for about a day already and they had only taken one short break to eat some dried food that was quickly consumed, the horses getting about 15 minutes worth of rest.

Finding Zaraki Kenpachi proved to be a difficult task, and Ichigo had a feeling that if he didn't find the rumored brute it would mean a great loss to their side in the upcoming war. Ichigo's eyes were on high alert and scanned the surroundings for anything out of place, while his ears listened to the orchestra the forest created, their task similar to the eyes was to search for anything unusual.

His sensitive nose scrunched up when he felt the stench of a rotting carcass nearby and he sped up his horse till they were past and the rotten smell could no longer cloud his nose from other more important scents which he needed to look out for. He let go of his reins so that he could stretch and satisfying pops sent chills down the ones riding behind him as Ichigo damn near purred in comfort.

He barely had time to register the reflection of sunlight on metal as he stretched and he realized dropping his guard for just a second had been a grave mistake as an arrow whistled past him and successfully tore through his upper left arm, although it was just a scratch compared to what he was used to.

Ichigo hadn't bothered to don his new battle attire which would most likely have repelled the arrow, and now he cursed himself for not using the opportunity to test run it. He knew he was bound to walk past trouble on the search and he quickly looked down to assess the damage was shallow and to be honest it just stung more than it hurt, so he shrugged it off and trained his eyes in the direction where the arrow had come from.

Black bled into his eyes as he located his target, but the assailant had no hopes of knowing he or she had been found out. Within seconds a fully reverted Ichigo was at the throat of the attacker and he soon had his light paws pinned down on two slender shoulders effectively keeping the attacker down. Ichigo snarled warningly and bared his fangs at the assailant digging his claws into the offender's shoulders drawing small barely audible pained sounds.

"Care to explain why you shot an arrow at me?" Ichigo snarled, his voice echoing like it came from several places at once.

Ichigo having had the time to study the one beneath him a bit further concluded he was pinning a very feminine faced grown man under him and he had to admire the skillfully done eye shadowing that had been done to make his eyes stand out against his pale skin. He waited for a while and got no answer which resulted in him giving off an annoyed grunt, so he decided to pull out some heavier shit.

"I suppose you are not aware whom you have just attacked and injured hmmm?" Ichigo cooed with a sweet voice, eyeing the man dangerously. He got a small barely visible shake of head from the man and his lips curled up into what could be described as a feline grin.

"Lucky you, you're in for a world of hurt when I drag you back with me. Attacking me does not come without consequences," Ichigo said licking his lips mischievously although to the one beneath him it would seem more like a crazed killing intent grin.

"Alright alright," the man uttered and Ichigo pretended he hadn't heard the assaulter turned captive. "Fine, I attacked you because I thought you were one of Aizen's men!" He explained and Ichigo's pupils narrowed into slits as he snarled loudly.

"Don't you dare put me under the same roof as that bastard!" Ichigo spat, his claws curling making the man whimper in pain. Ichigo quickly realized what he had done and quickly retracted his claws as far as they went.

"Ichigo-sama!" one of his escorts called as they finally found their superior after having missed his sudden leap into the woods.

"Stay back Ikakku, I've got this!" Ichigo snarled and the bald man wisely retreaded, aware of just how powerful the young cheetah was. "Sorry about that small interruption, now where were we?" Ichigo purred as he inched closer to the raven haired man's face, watching him swallow hard.

"Why would you attack one of Aizen's men in the first place," Ichigo asked.

"Because the bastard and his men are free kills within our gang, he killed our leader's adoptive daughter!" The feminine man said with a slightly shivering voice as he began squirming uncomfortably under Ichigo's hold.

"And your leader would be?" Ichigo asked eyeing the man with expectation.

"Zaraki Kenpachi!" he muttered and Ichigo's eyes lit up as he quickly released the man from his grasp, earning a confused look from the raven haired male.

"Perfect! I've been looking for your boss!" Ichigo said and veered back into his human form.

"What do you want with Taichou?" the man asked suspiciously.

"I seek to bring him a request from his majesty King Jaegerjaquez," Ichigo explained. "And may I ask your name?" he added.

"Ayasegawa Yumichika," the raven haired male answered, confident that the cheetah hybrid wouldn't attack him now.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, royal and personal assistant of King Jeagerjaques, Yoroshiku," he presented himself before being rudely shoved to the side by no other than his escort Ikakku.

"Madarame, what the hell!" Ichigo snarled as he got up on his feet again but went silent when he saw the display in front of him. Ikakku was embracing Yumichika closely and he looked at the obviously stunned ravenette.

"My god Yumichika, I thought I'd never see you again!" Ikakku said and the look of shock quickly drained from Yumichika.

"Ikakku?" he said before finally accepting that his childhood friend was there, hugging him and he quickly returned the hug as passionately as his old friend did.

"Where have you been baka!" Yumichika bellowed and hit Ikakku in the head making the bald man laugh and ruffle up his friend's hair.

"Ikakku, touch my hair again and I will kill you!" Yumichika snarled and when Ikakku dragged at a strand of hair again the raven hair flung at the royal guard. They brawled and wrestled on the ground laughing, Ichigo and the 3 remaining escorts watching with barely restrained laughter.

"I'm guessing you two have some kind of history?" Ichigo chuckled eyeing Ikakku with a knowing smirk on his face as the two got up from the ground and brushed their clothes free of dust.

"My deepest apologies Ichigo-sama, for leaving your back unguarded!" Ikakku quickly said realizing he had just abandoned Ichigo's safety to reunite with his friend and old flame.

"Don't worry Madarame, I am more than capable of watching my own back. It is only because Starrk insists that I bring along guards that you are here today," Ichigo laughed.

"Well then I am glad he is forcing you to have us come along," Ikakku said with a grin and slung his arm across Yumichika's shoulders. Ichigo gave a warm chuckle at that before turning his attention to Yumichika again, ready to ask the man for audience with his Taichou.

"So Yumichika was it?" Ichigo began and waited till Ikakku was back in his respective spot before continuing. "You've already been made aware of the fact that I seek audience with your Taichou Zaraki Kenpachi, do you think you could arrange for us to meet? Preferably in private," Ichigo asked and eyed the raven haired male expectantly.

"If you are willing to spar with him and measure strengths I am sure he'd have no problem greeting you…as long as you meet his standards that is," Yumichika answered. Ichigo scowled at that information and eyed the raven warily.

"And what would it take for me to reach his standards?" Ichigo asked and Yumichika paled slightly at the thought of his Taichou when he battled.

"Simply put you would need to be able to provide some fun for him, by fighting him of course," Yumichika answered.

"That's shallow, is there at least a level of skill I need?" Ichigo asked and Yumichika paled even more.

"Well…" he began before taking a deep breath and looking to Ikakku for support. "Taichou really loves fighting, and he's so strong that he puts restraints on himself so that he can drag out his battles. You'd have to be able to wound him at least twice and last half an hour for him to approve of you," Yumichika explained and to his surprise noticed a grin spread across Ichigo's face.

"Sounds like my kind of guy! Now I can put that time as Aizen's fighting pet to good use," Ichigo began with a happy tone before he pouted cutely. "Grimmjow treats me like I'm made of thin glass, I never get any action in my life, and I'm getting rusty!" he complained and that made Yumichika laugh loudly.

"I'll show you to our village, I think Taichou will like you Ichigo," Yumichika said.

"Finally! Finally someone refrained from adding titles to my name!" Ichigo blurted out and Yumichika chuckled at that and soon he was sitting behind Ichigo on the broad back belonging to his obsidian furred mount.

**~~~~BMBD~~~~**

After a good thirty minute ride they arrived at what seemed to be a small village, which was brimming with people. Ichigo looked the place over and concluded he wouldn't have minded living there, it looked like a good place for children to grow up in, as it was secluded from other bigger cities and different kinds of people.

Yumichika guided him up the main street and then told him to take off on a path which seemed to go out of town, and Ichigo realized his target and mission probably lived somewhere close to the village instead of in the very middle of it. The path they rode on was covered by a dense layer of leaves up in the air, making it hard to spot for commoners and Ichigo knew he was being led to a fortress of some sort.

When the path ended in a large clearing near the foot of the mountain he couldn't keep himself for gawking a little at the impressive building. In front of him was not a traditional Japanese nobility manor, no it was a fortress of stone and thick wood. It looked foreign and Yumichika soon explained to him.

"This is something a group of foreigners whom came sailing from far away built when they settled down here. However they were executed when they were found guilty of robbing gold from the mines nearby and this was left to rot. Taichou found it one day and decided our group would live here, seeing as it's pretty big, and it's built with towers for guards to stand in and all that," he said and Ichigo nodded absentmindedly to show he understood what the raven was telling him.

"You can settle your horse's in the stable for the night, if you plan to stay that is… I'll show Ichigo inside, the rest of you can wait here," Yumichika said before motioning for Ichigo to follow.

"That is out of the question Yumi; I am under strict orders to stay with Ichigo-sama all the time!" Ikakku said.

"There is no need Madarame, I can take care of myself," Ichigo said before ordering them to stay outside and then proceeded to follow the raven inside.

He was fascinated by the large hallway and the height of the ceiling as he was guided down the shady corridor. Not so long after they arrived at a large wooden door which looked really heavy and Ichigo took his time to admire the very fine carvings that had been done in the aging wood. When the door opened on complaining hinges he felt a light push in the back from Yumichika and he walked in in front of the feminine man and quickly took in his surroundings. His gaze came to a halt at a very frightening and intimidating looking throne, the man sitting atop it even more intimidating than the whole building itself and Ichigo quickly locked eyes with the man.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, Yoroshiku!" Ichigo presented himself at once and bowed his head slightly in respect.

"Ayasegawa, who is this person you've brought me?" Zaraki asked.

"He is King Jaegerjaquez' personal assistant, he seeks an audience with you to discuss something," Yumichika explained. "He is willing to fight you for approval should need be," Yumichika added on a second thought.

"Tch, royals hardly ever know how to even lift a sword! I doubt I'd be able to have some fun with the berry," the man snorted and failed to catch the furiously twitching eyebrow belonging to Ichigo. Anyone whom called him berry usually got the fist and he was more than ready to give the rude brute a piece of his mind, even as intimidating as he was.

Within seconds Ichigo had moved from his spot in the far end of the big room and up to the throne which whom he assumed was Zaraki Kenpachi sat on, and he reverted his arm so that deadly claws glinted in the light as he held it up at the brute's throat.

"You might want to reconsider, I'm not a royal or a noble, I'm just a filthy street kid whom grew up on rotten bread and spoiled water," Ichigo snarled and was satisfied with the obvious shock that lit up the brute's scarred face.

"Sorry, but I didn't bring my katana today, could I borrow one from you?" Ichigo said the challenge clear in his words as he removed his hand from the larger man's throat and disappeared in a flash and returned at an amused Yumichika's side.

"I like you kid, I hope you will be able to entertain me for the evening. Ayasegawa can show you to the armory, pick any weapon you like from it," the brute laughed before dismissing Yumichika whom quickly motioned for Ichigo to follow.

_This is going to be an interesting fight _the raven thought as he guided the orangette down the many halls and corridors of the European style castle.

* * *

**Sorry for not updating in a while guys. If you haven't noticed yet I started two new stories and they need my attention. Since both stories are originals from my mind I have them at the top of my priority list, as I've stated before request stories go below my personal stories in rank. Anyways, just came back from an unannounced vacation and I want to let you know that I am back XD Hope you liked this chapter although it is a bit short, forgive me pwease..**

**Please review!**


	13. Ally found

**Ch 13**

The screeching sound of grinding metal echoed between the old stone walls of Zaraki's castle as his ragged and beat up katana slid across Ichigo's chosen weapon. Ichigo was wielding a curious type of European sword which much resembled those that the noble knights of royalty would use, just much broader and heavier. On the sidelines Ayasegawa and Madarame wondered why on earth the slender and lithe built youngster would choose such a heavy and nearly un-wieldable sword like that.

When Ichigo had walked through the large weaponry his eyes had strayed from the many traditional Japanese Katana to land on that particular sword. Out of pure curiosity he had picked the sword up and had felt its heavy weight as he tried a few swings. Ichigo had fallen for the blade immediately, though difficult to wield without training he quickly saw its potential for doing great damage once he mastered it.

Now the blade was clashing heavily against Zaraki's unusually long and lighter Katana. Zaraki's blade was beautiful in Ichigo's mind. The way the sword edge was ragged made it seem like the blade had been through endless of battles, and the hilt which was wrapped with bandages intrigued him. Its guard which seemed like a 3dimensional star painted rust golden caught the light in a beautiful way, and Ichigo thought it fit the huge brute sparring against him perfectly.

Then there was that steady thrum of power and presence coming out of the blade in rapid waves each time his borrowed one clashed with it, Ichigo doubted that the man even knew what he really had in his hand. It lied in Ichigo's genes, the ability to know a spiritual sword from a normal one. After all his original clan were the guardians and wielders of those magnificent swords, and somewhere in Aizen's castle his own Mugetsu laid waiting for him to return.

Ichigo grinned as he and Zaraki broke apart and put some distance between them. The brute's skin was incredibly tough and thick and up until just recently Ichigo had not managed to cut through and wound the man. But about 2 minutes ago Ichigo had finally found the right pressure to lie on his blade when striking, and within those 2 minutes his speed had allowed him to leave the man in roughly the same condition he himself was in. Zaraki cracked his neck and flexed his torso a bit before tilting his head back to laugh loudly.

"Thanks Ichigo, this is great. I haven't had this much fun in ages!" He roared and Ichigo grinned back at him.

"I could say the same to you, being holed up in a mansion treated like a rare jewel I haven't been allowed much fun for a while," Ichigo snarled with a wide grin before lunging forward at the brute tossing his blade carelessly to the ground.

On the sideline Madarame and Ayasegawa's jaws hit the floor as Ichigo veered mid-air to his anthromophorbic form, deadly hooked talons growing from his nails, a long slender tale allowing his balance to stay perfect as it guided him through the air. Ichigo's round ears were perked forward and his muscles rippled as he bared his sharp fangs, landing on the brute's wide chest and digging his claws into the skin latching on. Ichigo snarled right into the man's face before kicking off in a backflip turning his palms upside down to allow his claws to rake up the man's torso. Zaraki grunted before eyeing Ichigo with a wicked grin tearing up his face.

"Hell yeah!" he growled before his own tail and ears sprout out, although he couldn't veer into an anthromophorbic state like Ichigo.

Only the breeds closest to the great animal and human spirits were gifted with such ability and the form held great powers. Ichigo had only discovered his about 4 years ago, and it took him 3 to fully master and draw out the forms potential.

"A bison? Well that's surprising!" Ichigo said, thrilled to finally meet a bison hybrid.

They were rare in Japan seeing as the mammal originated in the western part of the world. Ichigo grinned as those large and incredibly deadly horns grew from the brute's head and leapt at him. Snarls, yowls, grunts and roars shook the castle for a good hour more as claws shredded flesh and horns pierced skin. Finally both of them fell to the ground and returned to their human selves, their chests heaving as they panted heavily.

"Man that was so much fun!" Ichigo grinned before falling backwards to flop out on the floor with a satisfied sigh.

"Ya took the words right outta my mouth kid!" Zaraki grouseed before doing the same as the kid as they caught their breaths.

Ayasegawa nudged Madarame in the shoulder and winked, pointing his thumb behind them as a signal to leave and they quietly left the two combatants inside the large reception room.

"So will you listen to King Jaegerjaquez request now?" Ichigo finally rasped out.

"Ya earned it kid, spill it," Zaraki chukled.

"His majesty King Jeagerjaquez the 6th requests your assistance in an upcoming war against the gathered forces of the previous Feudal Lord of the East and his ally King Barragan of Hueco Mundo," Ichigo formally declared.

"A war kah?" Zaraki grunted. "Sounds good, my men haven't had much to do in ages. There's practically no one whom dares to stir up trouble in town anymore," Zaraki groused. "Fine, I'll lend you a hand. When will you be advancing?" Zaraki asked.

"As soon as possible, hopefully in 3 to 4 days," Ichigo explained.

"Sounds good, stay the night and I'll accompany you to Seiretei along with my men," Zaraki said.

"That sounds like a plan, now there's one more small favor I'd like to ask of you," Ichigo said.

"And?" Zaraki pushed.

"I would like to take a look at that Katana of yours, if you don't mind that is?" Ichigo questioned.

"Sure, I don't see why not," Zaraki said and bent up into a sitting position handing Ichigo the ragged blade.

Ichigo grasped the hilt gently and studied the blade closely, holding it up against the light and admiring how perfectly it was forged. The ragged edge seemed to have been made on purpose as it was just as sharp as any unharmed Katana would be. Ichigo ran his fingers down the blade in a gentle caress and his eyes widened as the blade responded to his touch eagerly.

Zaraki watched as the young man studied every aspect of his blade and even did a few swings it and he curiously studied the quite attractive male in front of him licking his lips at the arousing sight of torn clothes and battered skin, he wouldn't mind bedding the cheetah once.

Ichigo didn't notice the hungry eyes laid upon him as he slid his own shut concentrating on the blade in his hands. He focused on visualizing his reiatsu and a steady blue glow hugged his being as he concentrated it in his hand, pulsing it against the sword delighted to find the sword responding. Oddly enough the sword told him it had no name and Ichigo opened his eyes to see a steady yellow glow shroud the ragged blade and smiled gently.

"Such an amazing Zanpakuto," Ichigo whispered sliding his fingers down the blade once more.

The blade oozed of power and brute force and Ichigo loved it. Just then he caught Zaraki's baffled gaze and stiffened just a bit as he realized he had just revealed something that the great soul king had told him should never be shown to anyone not of proper lineage.

"What the heck were ya doin kid?" Zaraki asked and was shocked to find himself quickly pinned by a snarling Ichigo.

Ichigo's eyes glowed yellow as he with ease restrained the brute beneath him as he raised his reaitsu, the air becoming heavy and crushing as he stared into the green eye of the man beneath him. Ichigo pulsed his reaitsu into the man steadily and searched for any trace of reaitsu the man might have within him. After going deep his reaitsu got a response much to his surprise and he released the brute with a relieved sigh.

"Luck smiles upon me today. You are of an acceptable lineage," Ichigo declared. "For a moment there I thought the Senkaimon would open and the Soul King would have my head for showing you what I just did!" Ichigo said with a relieved laugh.

"Senkaimon, Soul King? Just what the hell are you babbling about kid?" Zaraki demanded. Ichigo sighed loudly, his shoulders dropping before he looked at the brute.

"It's a long story, but I'll tell you," Ichigo declared.

"Everyone knows the myth saying that in distant countries there are still humans whom have not joined with the animals, and there are animals that have not joined with humans," Ichigo began. "The myth is not so, it is a true story. Millennia's ago the human population and the animal population made a deal to unite their souls so that they could overcome the awaiting threat that lurked in the shadows at the time. That is the origin of you and me, human and animal hybrids as we are," Ichigo continued.

"The Soul King descended upon his creations and sealed the deal, merging our souls with those of the animals. Whilst doing so he chose a selection of lineages to protect the pact and bestowed them with great powers. I am of the ancient Shiba clan and our lineage was one of those given the responsibility to guard the pact," Ichigo said and took a short break.

"The sword I hold in my hand," Ichigo said and pointed at Zaraki's Katana which still laid in his grasp "is what we call a Zanpakuto. A spiritual type of sword bestowed upon us as a tool of maintaining the pact between humans andanimals by the Soul King," Ichigo said.

"Yours is the famous nameless Zanpakuto, one of the strongest the Soul King bestowed upon his guardians," Ichigo continued. "Myself I have a Zanpakuto, but it lies within Sosuke Aizen's mansion as he stole it when he annihilated my clan when I was six," Ichigo said the last part ending up in a growl.

"My mom was of the great winged clan, the rare joining of eagle and human, but she was killed by Sosuke when he raided our grounds. I, my father and my twin sisters were the only survivors until just recently when I found my own twin brother alive and well as he ironically tried to kill me. Last time we parted I was sure I had killed him," Ichigo said.

"My family and I ended up on the streets in a small town called Karakura and we lived there until just a couple of months ago. Dad and the eldest of my twin sisters went to work for Lord Kuchiki, and were gone for 5 years. The youngest of my sisters Yuzu fell ill with an incurable fever when we lived a life as poor people, and about 6 years ago I took in a slave whom escaped his master and he became part of our little family. He helped care for Yuzu while I worked at a nearby farm, but one day I got attacked by Hyena's, but then Toshiro tried to help and was taken hostage," Ichigo finished and took a long break.

"My lineage has very thick blood and my blood as an individual is even stronger due to the successful mating of two breeds that should not have been able to create offspring. I have a strong blood lust and if provoked enough I may lose control and give into my animalistic heritage completely, and should it happen during battle I would not have been able to distinguish between enemy and foe," Ichigo explained.

"By coincidence his majesty was out on a patrol and came to my rescue as he bit my jugular. He is of a stronger breed and his saliva can momentarily paralyze me," Ichigo explained. "His majesty and his solider killed 2 of the remaining Hyena's and the last one fled. Sadly the latter gathered his friends and fate would make it so that I fainted at work due to a damage I received in the previous battle. His majesty had come to check on me and found me in the field and brought me to Seiretei. When I woke I rushed back home only to find my house on fire and Yuzu not breathing, while Toshiro was barely alive and heavily injured. I killed both of the Hyena's that were inside and successfully revived my sister. Both her and Toshiro made a full recovery, but my little sister died not long after from her illness, my dad and her twin got to say goodbye at least as they came to the mansion with me after I delivered his majesty's order of assassination to Lord Kuchiki," Ichigo continued.

"Since then I have stayed at the mansion and I worked my way up and became his majesty's personal assistant," Ichigo ended. "Usually I am not allowed to tell anyone this, but since you have reiatsu you're qualified to be a guardian of the pact," Ichigo explained.

"Ok, I think I get everything you just said but what is reaitsu?" Zaraki asked.

"Reaitsu is a sort of spiritual power residing within your body. With proper training you will be able to control it and release and use it at your own will. It can be a huge advantage in battles seeing as when you use it your physical powers are amplified, and if you have a Zanpakuto your reiatsu can activate it. When a guardian and a Zanpakuto work together their power is incredible, and each Zanpakuto has their own unique ability," Ichigo explained.

"Your sword is a spiritual one, and we like to call them Zanpakuto. It has no name but I can sense its powers are great. If you would let someone at the mansion train you in reiatsu you and your Zanpakuto would be a formidable opponent," Ichigo ended.

"You refer to my sword as if it was a person, why is that?" Zaraki asked.

"Why indeed. Zanpakuto are swords with souls of fallen warriors inside, yours is a formidable one. It is the nameless Zanpakuto, it hosts the spirit of an ancient outlaw samurai whom held no name," Ichigo explained. "Are you willing to train so that you can partner up with your sword? As the heir to the Shiba clan it is my duty to inform you of your potential and to try and recruit you as a guardian," Ichigo spoke.

"It sounds like fun; I'll take you up on that. It'll be interesting to see what this baby can do!" Zaraki cackled which made Ichigo smile.

"Then it is settled, if you wouldn't mind I'd like to retire for the evening," Ichigo declared.

He turned around to pick up the blade he had discarded and sheathed it behind his back before heading for the door. When he grasped the handle he gave of a rather unmanly squeal as rough arms locked around him from behind and a strong masculine smell filled his nose. It turned him on immediately as the smell was full of pheromones and he leant back into the touch.

Ichigo's thick blood made him more instinctual than most and when a strong and willing partner presented himself to him it was hard to resist. Though of course Ichigo had the power to turn away if he did not like the person, he was not one to bed the strongest partner available.

"Accompany me in my quarters?" Zaraki asked as he noticed the young man was releasing his own pheromones in response to his request.

"Hmmmm…What are you implying Zaraki?" Ichigo purred out teasingly moaning a tiny bit when Zaraki nuzzled the crook of his neck.

"A night you will never forget," he growled in response and a pleasant tingle went down Ichigo's spine at the promises beneath those words.

Though Ichigo did love Toshiro, Grimmjow and Starrk very much cheetah's weren't loyal to a single mate by nature, and his animal side was so much stronger than theirs. There was no way he could feel guilt for bedding the beast currently holding him; it was simply part of his nature.

At the thought of Toshiro though, Ichigo's heart clenched painfully. He knew he had neglected his beautiful little caracal mate and he made a mental note to pay extra attention to the albino when he got back.

"Hnnn…I'm not impressed just yet," Ichigo teased pressing back into the warm embrace squealing when Zaraki lifted him up bridal style and carried him up a spiral staircase belonging to the largest tower of the impressive castle.

Zaraki kicked open the heavy oak door to his room and carelessly dropped Ichigo onto the sheets immediately crawling atop of him, his intimidating frame casting dark shadows over Ichigo's body in the dim light. Ichigo purred and moaned wantonly when their lips joined and he felt a surge of power entering him from the brute that subconsciously leaked some of his reaitsu.

Ichigo growled to entice him, and minutes later the tower walls echoed with wanton cries, lustful moans and cries of pleasure as Ichigo rode the proud bison, the latter driving the cheetah insane with his power and they would soon fall asleep in each other's arms, ready to set out on a short journey to Seiretei the following day.

**~~~~BMBD~~~~**

Ichigo and company rode up to the mansion walls and Ichigo smiled at the familiar gate guards.

"Open up, I've brought Zaraki Kenpachi and company," Ichigo announced. He smiled as the large gates slowly slid open and beckoned for everyone behind him to follow as he guided them through the courtyard belonging to the estate.

"You can leave your horses at the spare stables, there should be enough space for all of them," Ichigo said before drawing his breath.

"Luppi!" he shouted and was highly annoyed when the tiny and intolerable man took his sweet time aiding his call. He impatiently tapped his foot on the stone floor when the feminine man finally arrived.

"Luppi, gather your subordinates and make sure to care for Zaraki and his company's horses. I want them fed, cleaned and taken care off, dismissed!" Ichigo barked and smirked when the man did as he was told quickly as the intimidating shadow of Zaraki appeared behind him.

"God I hate that man," Ichigo snarled beneath his breath. He drew is breath once again and shouted loudly once again.

"Inoue!" his voice rang and immediately the orange haired girl appeared at his side. Ichigo's eyes took on a softer look as he addressed his personal servant.

"Inoue-san, please show Zaraki's men to their quarters and make sure they have everything they need," Ichigo said and the girl nodded quickly, her grey eyes sparkling as she sped off with a _Hai! _To do as she was told.

"My don't you seem like a pure bred royal," Zaraki chuckled.

"Shut up, I hate ordering people around. It is expected of me to do this much at least though," Ichigo sighed before turning to lead Zaraki into the reception hall.

Once they entered Ichigo's ears easily caught a distressed mewl coming from none other than Toshiro, and for a moment he forgot about Zaraki completely as he hurried towards were the sound had come from. Hurrying down a couple of halls not taking notice of Zaraki following him be dashed into their family's shared living room only to find Karin pinning a struggling caracal Toshiro to the ground as she tickled him. Ichigo couldn't help but crack up in laughter at the adorable sight before he made his presence known with a loud cough.

"Karin would you stop torturing Toshiro?" Ichigo requested and laughed when Toshiro wriggled free of Karin's grasp with a loud mewl, sprinting towards Ichigo in his caracal form still, before jumping and veering midair crashing into Ichigo crying his name. Ichigo winced as his wounds were torn at by the unexpected weight as he fell to the ground with a human Toshiro on top.

"Ichigo! I've been so worried, are you okay? What's with all the injuries, did he hurt you?" Toshiro began rambling but Ichigo silenced him by cupping his face and smashing their lips together making Toshiro blush a beautiful red.

"Ichigo! Not in front of Karin," he complained and Ichigo only chuckled before standing up with Toshiro in his grasp.

"We'll talk later ok Toshi? I have a few things to do," Ichigo said and Toshiro's beautiful teal eyes fell upon him with an understanding look before he veered and curled up around Ichigo's neck with a content look on his feline face.

"Tha's a very cute kitty ya've got there," Zaraki snickered and Toshiro lashed out for him with a clawed paw and hiss. "He's got fire as well," Zaraki chuckled.

"Well yes, now if you would stop embarrassing my mate I will personally show you to your room. I'll come and get you when it is time for your audience with Grimm-…. Err I mean his majesty King Jaegerjaquez," Ichigo quickly corrected himself.

When inside the mansion it was so easy for him to slip his tongue and call the King by his real name. Zaraki didn't seem to notice much to Ichigo's relief, and they chatted quietly as Ichigo led him down a labyrinth of halls until they finally arrived at the room he would be staying at.

"I'll come and get you in an hour's time," Ichigo declared before leaving Zaraki on his own to greet his blue and brown haired lovers.

He couldn't deny the fact that he had missed them even though he'd only been gone for two days, and he found himself in need of one of Starrk's magnificent massages, he was really stiff and sore. With a content smile Ichigo made his way down towards Grimmjow's office. For just a small while his mind was somewhere else than on the upcoming war and he enjoyed the minutes of relaxing as they would most likely be the last he would have for a good time forward.

* * *

**I'm so sorry it took so long for me to update this… I'm just really in love with my newest story Embrace the Enemy at the moment and I literally had to force myself to not open that story and write on it instead of this one. Embrace the Enemy has received the best welcome I've ever experienced and I'm pretty sure it has about 60 followers and 36 reviews after just four chapters. Anyways, no I did not write a full smut scene for Ichigo and Kenpachi. They're not going to be a main pairing so I felt there was no need, I leave it up to your own imagination XD Anyways, hope you enjoyed this chapter, and do stay tuned for the next!**

**Please review!**


	14. Two new Guardians

**Two new Guardians**

Ichigo walked down the hallway of the west wing of the royal manor and passed about 6 doors, before stopping in front of the seventh on his left. He briefly relived the memories of the bison's unique and slightly rough but yet gentle touch from the previous night, feeling his crotch respond ever so briefly. He shook his head free of the previous night's escapades and gave the door a three quick knocks.

"Kenpachi-sama, I am here to escort you to his majesty's office," Ichigo stated with his formal language and waited for the man to reply.

"Oh Ichigo!" The brute's reply came and Ichigo heard some rustling inside the room. "Come on in Ichigo, I aint quite ready yet," Kenpachi's gruff voice called seconds after and Ichigo smiled before sliding the door open and entering the rather spacious room, only to find his jaw hitting the floor as a nude Kenpachi rustled through his bag for clothing.

Ichigo didn't realize he had been staring until a seductive purr escaped Kenpachi as he said "Enjoying the view?"Ichigo jumped and quickly averted his eyes and blushed a deep red before replying.

"Ah no, I just didn't expect to find you naked in here," Ichigo said and moved to sit down on one of the cushions around the low dining table situated in front of the futon which Kenpachi sat on.

"Yeah right," Kenpachi chuckled and grinned at Ichigo, he had purposely refrained from dressing so he could play a prank on the beautiful cheetah.

The bison would be honest, he'd love to bed the fiery little spitfire of a feline if he had the chance, and he would damn right try to flirt his way into the hay with him again. Kenpachi smirked at Ichigo before finding his hakama and dragged them on, tying them at his waists to keep them from dropping before he stood up to tower over Ichigo with his impressive height.

Ichigo hadn't paid much attention to the brute's body while they coupled but now that he had a chance to look at the brute's still bare torso more closely, he realized the man's rough skin was covered in scars to many for him to even hope counting.

"Wow," Ichigo breathed as he studied the largest scars.

"Did ya say somethin'?" Kenpachi asked as he had just barely heard Ichigo whisper something.

"Oh nothing, I'm just impressed by the amount of scars you have. You sure you haven't died a few times already?" Ichigo began and ended the sentence with a joke which had Kenpachi let out a rolling laughter.

"There's been times when I should have died yes, but I aint gonna go down easily," Kenpachi replied with a grin before finding tying white bandages around his body from the hip and up to his ribs, proceeding to drag his haori on top and then tying a white sash which held the scabbard of his ever present katana in place around his hip. Then he dragged a white sleeveless open thin fabric coat on top of that again, the cape being torn across the shoulders and at the bottom, featuring the number eleven written between his shoulder blades and black diamonds and circles spread out in a repeating pattern at the bottom line of it.

Ichigo had liked the man's outfit the first time he saw it and it appealed to him in a certain way as it really brought out the raw and wild brutality of him, and once again he found himself appreciating the look on the brute.

"That outfit really suits you," Ichigo hummed before standing up to wait for the brute to finish.

Ichigo was surprised to find that the man actually combed his hair just a little before dipping the comb in water and used it as a means of dragging his hair back and keep it there.

Kenpachi hummed in agreement before taking Ichigo completely by surprise as he pounced at the cheetah and captured his lips in a deep kiss. After getting rid of the initial shock Ichigo growled and grabbed Kenpachi's hands and forced them off of him, using his lean but strong feet to kick the brute off of him.

"Not here in the manor Kenpachi, if the king and his soldier were to see you with me I am not sure what they would do," Ichigo snarled but softened at the confused look Kenpachi gave him.

"Look Kenpachi, I'm a cheetah. I have overly thick blood due to inbreeding in the past and my animalistic instincts are far stronger than with most other hybrids. That reason alone can cause me to lose myself during battle, but that reason is also why I cannot stay loyal to one mate alone. I already have three mates including Toshiro, but that didn't keep me from bedding you. Though I may love them I still feel no guilt for bedding you, although some may think that would be appropriate, and please try to understand that the same applies for you. I wouldn't mind coupling with you again, but it would have to happen outside of these walls," Ichigo said with a smile as if it was the most natural thing and Kenpachi quickly got the picture.

"I see, so his royal highness would fret if I laid hand upon his mate," Kenpachi chuckled. "The offer still stands though Ichigo," Kenpachi said with a purr and bent down to kiss Ichigo briefly again, Ichigo allowing it this time.

"Thank you for understanding, well then I believe we are already late. Please come with me," Ichigo said and turned his back to the brute and walked out of the door, leading Kenpachi through the manor and into Grimmjow's office.

**~~~~BMBD~~~~**

Ichigo silently slid open the door to his own quarters, trying to not awaken the caracal should be sleeping. Though Toshiro had his own separate room he still spent his nights in Ichigo's bed most of the time, so Ichigo immediately looked over to his own heightened futon to see if the caracal was there. Finding it empty he searched the room for the caracal's reiatsu.

Yes Toshiro had reaitsu, but Ichigo had never thought to tell him, thinking the small feline would not want to engage in any fighting. Little did Ichigo know that a Zanpakuto spirit had been haunting his mate's dreams and this would be the evening in which he would be told about it. Toshiro was in the room, he knew as much after having scanned the area quickly, and when he heard a small shuffling sound from behind him he turned around with a smirk and caught the pouncing caracal.

Ichigo cradled Toshiro close and nuzzled the crook of his neck purring, his own vibrating throat responded to by the small albino. Toshiro nuzzled Ichigo's jaw gently and looked up at him with teal pleading eyes.

"I have much time to make up for don't I my beautiful little mate," Ichigo purred seductively as he guided them over to the futon dropping them down into the comfy sea of covers.

Ichigo purred at the sight bestowed upon him. Beneath him the beautiful albino caracal laid dressed in a very see through night yukata of the finest silk, embroidered with silver dragons on its sleeves and held together by a teal sash.

"You should wear this more often Toshi," Ichigo purred as he carefully opened the yukata and slid it down of the smaller man's slender shoulders, Toshiro doing the same with Ichigo's attire.

Toshiro mewled softly when Ichigo's tongue found his collarbone and trailed it, his teeth nipping at his sensitive skin ever so slightly making promises of what was to come. The lean form of the caracal arched ever so slightly into Ichigo's gentle touch, as his fingers traced the caracal's slender but yet trained abdomen gently making delightful shivers pass through the silvette's body.

Ichigo quickly threw off the rest of his own clothing and made haste to get back into torturing his mate's body with sensual touches. Ichigo moved up to let his breath ghost past Toshiro's ears as the smaller male couldn't help but let his tail and ears come out of hiding. Ichigo knew the caracal had overly sensitive ears and he played with the soft appendages, licking and nipping at them making the smaller feline produce oh so lovely mewls and moans of pleasure.

Ichigo's groin was already aching hard, and his mate fared no better as Ichigo sealed their lips in a kiss, his hands sneaking down between their bodies to circle around Toshiro's throbbing member. The small silvette mewed softly when Ichigo's hand finally took grip of his hilt and began pumping his shaft into a proud erection, his nipples and collarbone ravished by the cheetah's sinful mouth at the same time.

When Ichigo finally engulfed the small member with his mouth, having no problem covering it all with his mouth the slightly sexually frustrated caracal didn't need much stimulation before he came hard into Ichigo's mouth. The cheetah happily swallowed the snow flavored substance and relished in the feeling of the slight infusion of reaitsu he got from his mate with it.

When Toshiro regained his mind he playfully flipped them over so that he straddled Ichigo and teasingly moved his hands further and further down while letting his mouth play with his alpha's nipples and nibble at his jawline. Ichigo moaned when the caracal began bobbing his member, his trained tongue swirling around his shaft to increase the pleasure and Toshiro purred during his actions to top it all.

Ichigo moaned softly at the silvette's ministrations and gently fisted his hands into those shiny locks of silver letting his hand follow Toshiro's movement as he arched his neck backwards to let his head rest on the pillow, doing his best to not buck his hips. One thing was for sure, Toshiro provided one of the best blowjobs he had ever experienced and control was a hard thing to keep with the sexy little feline on top. With a few more stronger bubs which had Toshiro hollow his cheeks Ichigo spilled his fluids into the warm cavern and Toshiro mewed in satisfaction as he swallowed his mate's seed, relishing in the unique flavor which he had come to love, his eyes unbeknownst to him glowing just slightly in the dim lighted room as his own reiatsu welcomed the infusion gotten from Ichigo's release.

Pleading turquoise eyes landed upon Ichigo seconds after, the want and lust swirling in those depths alone was enough to stir Ichigo's semi hard member into a full erection again. Ichigo bared his fangs in a dominant growl before flipping their positions yet again his mouth immediately latching onto the lithe male's jugular resulting in a submissive whimper escaping Toshiro's choice.

Ichigo nibbled the area and licked it, pleased to see a hickey forming there to tell of their coupling before he let his fingers linger in front of the caracals mouth, purring when a slick tongue swirled around them leaving the digits coated in saliva. Ichigo hummed in approval when the caracal eagerly spread his legs and

Ichigo gently slipped a digit inside that warm and pulsing entrance, relishing in the feeling of the tight passage clamping down on his finger as he moved it back and forth. When the feline began thrusting back onto his fingers a second was added, and scissoring movements were applied to stretch the warm entrance of his beautiful silver gem.

When oh so delightful whimpers and mewls began escaping the caracal, Ichigo lined up with expertise and thrust right into the silvette's sweet spot making Toshiro arch his back off of the futon with a strangled cry of pleasure.

"Oh god Ichi… N-ah hah…Move teme!" Toshiro moaned and cussed and mewed loudly in pleasure when Ichigo pulled out and drove in nailing his prostate yet again making a whole galaxy swim through his vision.

Ichigo grabbed Toshiro's hips and lifted him up slightly from the futon so that he would be able to go deeper and he groaned loudly in pleasure when Toshiro's lean feet locked around his own waist as the caracal did his best to meet Ichigo's gentle but strong thrusts.

"Hnn-ah," Ichigo voiced as Toshiro began timing intentional clenching of his cave to Ichigo's thrusts. "God Toshi…so fuckin…a-hn hah…tight," Ichigo panted as he felt the feline begin to quiver in his grasp signaling the caracal's second release was nearing, the cavern clenching tighter and tighter on Ichigo's cock until they both came together with loud yowls of joint pleasure before collapsing against each other.

Ichigo rose on his elbows panting heavily, enjoying the sight of his flustered and flushed mate beneath him. Toshiro's silver hair was splayed out on the futon in a wild mess and danced with the moonlight coming in from their window as the small feline panted heavily with dazed eyes still full of lust.

"Ready for round two?" Ichigo purred as he bent down to nibble at Toshiro's still visible caracal ears before his hand gently stroked his sensitive tail, making the caracal moan and arch into Ichigo's sweat slicked body.

"Please Ichi, more…n-ah," Toshiro demanded and ended his sentence with a wanton moan as Ichigo's member brushed his own creating pleasurable friction which made his need burn strong for the third time.

Ichigo purred lovingly as he flipped his mate over and hauled him up onto bent knees to rest his torso on his elbows, before he parted Toshiro's cheeks and slid into the revealed entrance. For the second time Ichigo rode his partner, his rhythm and pace wilder, harder and faster this time than the first which drew strangled cries of pleasure from the caracal with each thrust.

Once again nearing their end Ichigo sneaked a hand forward to grasp the silvette's member as he continued his merciless thrusting, the caracal arching his back at the combined pleasure before they both came with loud cries of satisfaction.

Completely exhausted they laid sprawled out, their limbs entwined with each other as they tried to regain their senses. A few minutes later Toshiro cuddled closer to Ichigo's body and slung his arm across Ichigo's chest before he raised his head to rest on the joining of Ichigo's shoulder and collarbone.

"Ichigo?" Toshiro said not completely certain if his mate was still awake.

"Hmm?" Ichigo mused and looked down into worried turquoise eyes. "What's wrong Toshi?" Ichigo asked and pulled the silver gem closer to his body.

"I've had this strange dream while you were gone. Every time I went here for a nap I dreamed of myself walking the same path each time through this snow filled, ice cold and stormy mountain," Toshiro began. "And I always ended up in the same place; it was like a large open field of snow surrounded by large and beautiful ice formations. And whilst I stood there admiring the beauty the storm would pick up and the wind would bite my skin, and then I would see this blurry shape up in the sky and a voice speaking to me, yet I can never make out its words. And every time I've woken up from that dream the room has always been ice cold and a barely visible layer of ice covered everything inside, yet the cold didn't bother me, no it almost made me more comfortable than before," Toshiro ended and looked up at his mate with questioning eyes. He didn't know why, but he felt Ichigo knew more than he let on and was hiding something from him and everyone else.

"So you've finally awakened," Ichigo mused as he stared into space absentmindedly combing Toshiro's gravity defying hair with his fingers.

"What do you mean I have awakened?" Toshiro asked.

He gasped when Ichigo turned golden eyes at him and a faint blue glow began hugging his figure and the air suddenly felt much heavier and Toshiro felt like gravity had just raised a couple of notches.

"You've begun to awaken as a guardian of the Soul Contract," Ichigo said hauling in his reiatsu while you spoke.

"Guardian? What are you talking about Ichigo?" Toshiro asked completely bewildered by everything running through his head at the moment.

Ichigo smiled gently at his mate before explaining everything to Toshiro in a similar way to how he had told Kenpachi, the only difference was that Toshiro got the complete picture with all details and info. About half an hour later a completely baffled Toshiro was trying to memorize and process all the info he had gotten out of his mate.

"So you're saying I'm having this dream because one of the great named Katana is trying to reach me?" Toshiro asked.

"Indeed, I believe it to be so," Ichigo said. "I'm pretty sure which of them it is, it is one of the most powerful ones in existence and it has been refusing any Guardian whom has tried to wield it for centuries," Ichigo said with awe in his voice.

The Zanpakuto he spoke of, was one of the most beautiful and powerful spiritual swords ever to be forged. It was the great Hyorinmaru, the ice dragon which was calling upon its chosen master.

"What's its name?" Toshiro asked and Ichigo suddenly looked really serious.

"That is not for me to tell you. All Guardians must earn the right to learn their Zanpakuto's name, and if you continue to try and make contact with it in your dreams I am sure you will learn its name. Once you've learned its name and your souls have bonded everything else will come naturally," Ichigo said and smiled reassuringly at his mate.

"But what if I don't want to be a guardian?" his mate asked.

"One cannot deny the call of a Guardian, to do so would be to forfeit one's very soul. You cannot deny the call; it could very well kill you if you tried to reject the power bestowed upon you." Ichigo said sternly before he rubbed his mate's hand in a reassuring manner.

"Believe me Toshiro, once you have mastered your call your strength will be able to measure up to mine, you'll no longer need my protection all the time," Ichigo said with a smile before catching his mate's lips in a deep and passionate kiss.

"Now sleep, there will be much to do tomorrow," Ichigo purred before he began humming a tune which his caracal mate loved, lulling the small feline into sleep within 2 minutes.

Ichigo ran the back of his hand across Toshiro's face in a loving manner before he snuggled in close to his mate and let the land of dreams drag him out of the harsh reality and into content sleep.

**~~~~BMBD~~~~**

Ichigo watched with a smile as he and Toshiro watched Starrk and Grimmjow grill Kenpachi on how to draw out a Zanpakuto's strength. After Shiro had arrived and Grimmjow had learned of Ichigo's true heritage he had gotten his suspicions of Ichigo being a Guardian confirmed. And better yet Ichigo had discovered Kenpachi's hidden call and brought him along.

Guardians were the most powerful warriors one could imagine, and the more their troops had the better. They were in a secluded part of the manor, a huge training area which was private to the king and Kenpachi was enjoying a hard lesson in how to bond with his Zanpakuto and bring out its potential, as well as training himself in the arts of controlling his reiatsu to turn it into an effective weapon.

Even before Kenpachi started his training Ichigo had been able to foretell that Kenpachi's reaitsu would reach uncontrollable heights and he had consorted the wise Unohana for a way to lock away his reaitsu adorned Kenpachi's face now instead of that plain eye patch, was a seal in the form of one.

The new eye patch had style and finesse to it, the black leather adorned by beautiful golden seams along the three straps. One strap protruded from the right corner of the patch and went across his forehead in a diagonal line, halfway along changing into a silver chain which went through his thick and wild mane to connect with the collar around his throat at the center of the neck atop of the spine.

The second strap protruded from the middle of the patch's bottom and went across his high cheek bones and down to connect with the collar, while the final one rested atop of his ear and connected with the one behind his head where the chain was broken off with a ring, only to continue on after it on its path down to the collar.

The eye patch would later prove to become a great ace in the sleeve for Kenpachi on the battlefield. Ichigo looked over to Toshiro and once again admired the beautiful Katana sheathed on his back.

It had only taken Toshiro a day to learn his Zanpakuto's identity, and the blade had heeded its master's call and appeared by his side during the night. Toshiro had already earned himself the name of a Guardian Prodigy from Ichigo, as he had quickly learned more than half of the secrets his Zanpakuto held, and Ichigo was incredibly proud of his strong and beautiful mate.

In just 3 days they would ride out with Grimmjow's army to a rendezvous point in which all the armies fighting on for Pantera would gather on, and Ichigo was itching to behead the man which had ruined his and undoubtedly Toshiro's life, for even though Toshiro had never spoken his abusive masters name Ichigo just knew Aizen had been the one to destroy Toshiro from the core and out, leaving the pieces for Ichigo to put back together.

Oh how he looked forward to a sweet revenge, and oh how much pain the bastard would endure when Ichigo set his claws upon him.

With those thoughts in mind as a motivator Ichigo left Toshiro to watch the training session and strolled off to find his twin brother for a much needed synching of their battle techniques and reaitsu.

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**Whoop di do! Heya guys, sorry for making you wait :p But yeehah, a new BMBD chapter for you ;) Hope you like it, and do stay tuned for the next one :D**

**Please review!**


	15. Bonding of the the twin souls

**Bonding of the twin souls**

Grimmjow was walking down the many halls of his castle, his eyes frantically searching for any signs of an orange mop of hair. Ichigo had been gone since their morning meal and he hadn't attempted to tell them where he was at either, and now the blue haired panther was becoming increasingly worried about his much beloved mate.

He had asked everyone, including Kenpachi and his men but no-one seemed to know where he was. Grimmjow was so lost in thought that he didn't realize what happened until he made impact with the floor together with Isshin whom he had bumped into.

"Oh my, forgive me your majesty. I was not watching my step," Isshin apologized and extended his hand to help the young man to his feet.

"Oh no, the fault lies with me. I was lost in thought," Grimmjow replied, a worried scowl knitting his brows together.

"Is there something bothering you sir?" Isshin asked, his parental instinct having no trouble distinguishing the emotion written in the young King's face.

"I can't find Ichigo anywhere, he's been gone since our morning meal," Grimmjow replied looking at Ichigo's sire hoping the man would have an idea where he was.

"Ah, I would have thought it was something more important," Isshin said calmly and crossed his arms with a friendly and knowing smile on his face.

"How can it not be important, your son has been gone since morning!" Grimmjow yelled in an exasperated voice pointing a shaky finger at Isshin.

"Calm down your highness, Ichigo is perfectly fine," Isshin said.

"How do you know?" Grimmjow demanded.

"I know because he told me where he was off to after breakfast," Isshin calmly stated and smirked at Grimmjow.

"Then where is he?" Grimmjow asked.

"He is in his own room, I am amazed you didn't think to look there," Isshin said.

"I looked there several times already!" the bluenette shouted and threw his hands up in the air.

"Then you obviously didn't look well enough sir," Isshin replied with an amused chuckle.

"What the heck is so funny Ossan?" Grimmjow demanded and was even more annoyed when Isshin laughed even more.

"Oh your highness, you're so naïve. To think you wouldn't notice Genjutsu even when it is thrown right into your face," Isshin laughed resisting the urge to bend over and laugh hysterically. Grimmjow was about to yell at him again when the words finally sunk in and his cyan eyes shrank to mere dots in realization.

"Why the heck would he put up an illusion in his own room, what is it that you aren't telling me Ossan?" Grimmjow demanded with an angry glare directed at his mate's sire.

"It simply means he does not wish to be disturbed," the broad shoulder man in front of him answered.

"And why is that? You're being too vague Ossan, I demand answers!" Grimmjow declared and crossed his arms.

"He does not want to be disturbed because he and Shirosaki are linking their souls back together after they were so harshly separated when they were cubs," Isshin explained.

"And what exactly does that mean?" Grimmjow asked.

"It means they are indulging in mating to re-establish the link between their bodies which Aizen destroyed," Isshin began and caught Grimmjow's arm when he realized the bluenette was about to dash off to stop their coupling.

"Grimmjow, you must not interfere!" Isshin said sternly, the seriousness in his voice freezing Grimmjow.

"Ichigo and Shirosaki's circumstances are very special. Since they are so close to their animal heritage due to our overly thick blood their bodies and souls are unstable. You have no idea what Ichigo has been forced to deal with over the years since he was separated from his brother. Since they are twins the burden of their animal soul was evened out between them due to their linked souls, but since they were separated for so long their soul link shattered," Isshin began.

"Due to the shattering of their soul link Ichigo a few years later lost himself when trying to defend against some thugs, and he ended up losing his mind to the animal inside and killed not only the thugs but many innocent people and children. Ichigo has resented his very existence since them, and he attempted suicide many times in the past due to it. The fact that he is still with us today proves his will to live and fight," Isshin ended.

"Why did Ichigo lose himself?" Grimmjow asked, obviously shocked by what his father in law had revealed to him.

"As you probably know both my sons and I possess the ability to take on the form of a full cheetah, and the evolved form of our ears and tails being shown and our body morphing resulting in a humanoid cheetah," Isshin began.

"The reason we can do that is because ever since our kind was driven near complete annihilation, we were forced into mating our own siblings as a manner to replenish our severely lowered numbers. Since then it has been branded into our instincts to mate the one closest to us, and after generations I was the first to go against that instinct and mate Ichigo's mother. We never expected her to actually conceive because she was an eagle, but the Soul King saw fit to bless us with unique cubs," Isshin continued.

"However due to this my children have been burdened by incredibly strong instincts and if they lower their guard for even the blink of an eye, the animal soul will consume the human one. Reverting to our animal form always comes with the risk of losing our human soul to the animal and with the way Ichigo frequently does so he continues to expose himself to his animal side," Isshin said taking a long break.

"Ichigo and Shiro's souls were bonded the moment they were born, allowing them to feel each others pain, read each others thoughts and tell when their other half would be in danger. This link also allowed them to protect each other from the animal part of their soul's influence, creating a very fine balance. When their soul link was destroyed it disrupted that balance and since then everyday has been a constant fight for Ichigo and Shiro to keep their human mindset. As we speak they are trying to rebuild this very important link, and it is best done by indulging in each other physically. I will not allow you to disturb them. Ichigo and Shiro love each other as more than just siblings, and it shall remain that way. It does not mean he no longer loves you, Starrk or Toshiro, it is just how his nature is," Isshin ended and patiently waited for Grimmjow to get the full picture.

"I understand. Very well, I shall leave them be," Grimmjow replied before giving a grateful smile to his mate's sire. He was about to head for his office, his mind spinning with the new information when something revealed itself to him.

That fateful day when they had first met and he had sunk his fangs into Ichigo's jugular, the young cheetah had been well on his way to complete regression. And then those words the caracal had spoken, he knew now that he had hindered Ichigo from causing another massacre and saved him from yet another burden to carry on his young shoulders.

Grimmjow was awe-stricken, his entire being beginning to fill with respect and a terrible ache. His heart ached for the suffering Ichigo, how could he not have realized that behind the beauty of the cheetah laid a tormented soul who's past was less than desirable.

Unbeknownst to the young King a tear rolled down his cheek, and it was noticed by his loyal guardian whom had eavesdropped on his conversation with Isshin, his King's emotions reflected in his own face at the shocking truth. The knight and the King were left with much to think about that day, as they waited for the twin's to come out of their chambers.

**~~~~BMBD~~~~**

Ichigo moaned lustfully at the devious porcelain fingers that ran across is scarred yet sensitive skin. Predatory golden locked with his warm chocolate brown as a mane of white tickled his skin, the hair tie long gone as Ichigo loved to see his brother's beautiful hair catch the light in the most sensual ways possible. Just by the light touches he received he could already feel the nudging of his soul as it eagerly reached out for its dear counterpart.

Small enticing grunts and purrs left the far depths of Shiro's strong lungs as he worked his brother's skin. Both of their hives were so heavily scarred, the scars memories of the endless battles they had fought against others and the one they had fought against each other. Shiro knew exactly which scars had been left by his claws, and vice versa. His hand and body trembled as he traced those very same scars, the memories running through him making a single tear taint Ichigo's marred skin.

"Shiro?" Ichigo voiced with concern as he locked eyes with Shiro.

It was well hidden, but deep in those golden depths he could see how pained Shiro was. Ichigo. Ichigo let out a slightly distressed whine before he sat up and pulled his brother with him, dragging him into a warm and desperate embrace. Shiro was completely still for a moment before he accepted the hug of forgiveness, burying his head in the crook of Ichigo's neck, his ashen mane framing Ichigo's shoulder as silent sobs left him. For Shiro to show his emotions so clearly was a huge alert to how bad the albino really had it and Ichigo licked at his brother's sensitive ears while running his pointed nails through his mane.

"Shhhhh," Ichigo soothed, his velvet voice going straight to Shiro's heart. "You know what happened was not your fault or mine. I would never hold it against you, you're my dear brother," Ichigo purred into Shiro's twitching ears.

"M sorry King, here I am, goin' all sentimental on ya. I probably ruined yer mood already," Shiro excused himself.

"Baka," Ichigo chuckled. "There is nothing you could do to ever make me refuse you, nor could you ever ruin my mood by gracing me with your hidden feelings. I love it when you open up to me Shi, it makes me feel more deeply connected to you," Ichigo said with a happy tone, smiling warmly at Shiro who eyed him with a look of disbelief.

"Now don't leave me hanging Shi, I've been yearning for you for so long," Ichigo purred, his voice sultry and seductive as he put a finger to his lips and parted them slightly.

Shiro snapped out of his emotional haze and growled in a show of dominance at his otouto, before resuming his previous course of actions. It didn't take long for Ichigo to be a panting mess, sweat lacing his skin as he writhed and squirmed under his brother's touch. Ichigo mewled softly when Shiro finally paid attention to his swollen member and began pumping it softly; his clawed finger running through Ichigo's slit carefully making delightful shivers go through his little brother's frame.

At the same time he pumped himself until beads of pre-cum began streaming and he coated the fingers of his free hand with his bodily fluids, sensually circling Ichigo's puckered entrance and easing a digit inside when Ichigo mewled softly at him. Shiro purred seductively at his brother before he gracefully lowered his mouth with the navy blue tongue down onto his brother's begging member, his throat easily adjusting so that he could deep throat his brother.

Ichigo let out a long wanton moan as Shiro's sinful tongue swirled around him while he bobbed up and down, and his toes curled together with his slightly arching back as the boiling in his stomach grew to incredibly large levels. Ichigo never even realized Shiro had eased three fingers inside him before he hit Ichigo's prostate and the golden cheetah came hard into his brother's mouth.

Shiro moaned loudly when he felt the first few strings of their soul link melting together again for the first time in too long. Ichigo did the same and relaxed back into the comfortable bed as he rode the waves of his orgasm. He then let out a wanton whine and looked at Shiro with pleading eyes. Shiro smirked and leaned forward to engage with his brother in a sensual waltz of tongue's, his navy tongue going deep into Ichigo's warm cavern mapping out his mouth along the way.

Ichigo happily welcomed the slick muscle and curled his own tongue around Shiro's, both of them drowning moans in their counterpart's mouth while they danced. They released each other with a wet pop, a string of saliva connecting their open mouths as they panted.

"Shi," Ichigo whined spreading his legs invitingly. "I can't wait anymore, I feel so empty without you," Ichigo begged and reached out for his pale copy.

Not one for emotional talking during the act Shiro answered by snarling possessively and repositioning himself to lay comfortably between Ichigo's legs, running his tortured and neglected member over Ichigo's twitching entrance. Ichigo whined at his brother and was rewarded with a sting of pain mixed together with incredible pleasure as he was finally united with his brother, their link being fed greatly already.

"Haaaaaahn…n-ah…Shiro…hah-ah," Ichigo moaned loudly when Shiro began thrusting in and out at a slow pace, the tip of his cock just barely brushing against Ichigo's center of pleasure.

"Nnngh…so incredibly hah-nh…tiiiiiight," Shiro ground out as he continued to move in and out of his brother's incredibly warm cavern in sensual waves.

Ichigo was digging his fingers into the mattress, shredding it making feathers pop out while his toes curled due to the intense pleasure he received. While his brother thrust in and out of him he continued to pick up more and more of his brother's thoughts as their link grew stronger in a steady pace. When Ichigo no longer felt enough satisfaction from their current pace he raised his upper body and locked his arms around Shiro's neck, arching his head upwards to whisper into his brother's ear.

"This isn't enough Shi, ride me like you want me to crumble in your grasp," Ichigo purred into the white appendage and growled when a visible shiver wracked Shiro's body at the promise in those words.

With a loud growl Shiro pushed Ichigo down onto the mattress with force, pulling out of Ichigo completely and relished at the displeased sound of loss that left his golden gem's mouth. Without care he flipped Ichigo over and did what Ichigo had done to the caracal that day, hoisting Ichigo up by the hip so that the golden cheetah rested on his lower arms with his perfect ass in the air and legs spread wide.

"Oh you look so perfect like this," Shiro purred as he leaned over Ichigo's back to nip and lick at the offered neck as Ichigo purred wantonly and bared his jugular for his dominant to ravish.

Ichigo moaned deeply at the licks and nips and used his tail to stroke Shiro's back suggestively, a needy whine erupting from him together with the action. Ichigo arched his back and let out a yowl of pleasure as Shiro mercilessly thrust into him with power Ichigo had never experienced before, nailing his prostate making his very spine tingle with stayed like that for a moment, enjoying the feel of being so intimately connected to each other.

"Oh god yes!" Ichigo yowled when Shiro pulled back and thrust into his prostate again, Ichigo's fingers curling into the sheets beneath him as that unmistakable pressure throbbed in his crotch yet again. Shiro set up a wild and ruthless pace and they both moaned each other's names with each and every thrust, Shiro continuing to bite and lick at Ichigo's still bared throat growling possessively.

"Hah-hnn…fuck Shi…hah-ah….ah-nn…I'm gonna…cum soon," Ichigo moaned between his short intakes of breath and moaned loudly when Shiro did a particularly hard thrust into his prostate.

"Mhhhnn…hah-hnn…me too," Shiro groaned and thrust into his brother yet again.

As they continued their wild coupling they slowly changed forms, their bodies reverting to that of their animal soul. Soon Shiro's claws dug into Ichigo's furred sides, as he bit down into the scruff of Ichigo's spikey mane. Ichigo's tail curled over Shiro's white furred back as they both grunted and meowed in pleasure, snarls of genuine animals leaving their slender throats and muscles chests as they neared completion.

When Ichigo arched his feline back with a yowl of intense pleasure, Shiro joined him with a menacing roar and they exploded together, wings shooting out from just behind their shoulders as their link came into completion once again. The unique twin brothers who's existence was a miracle bestowed upon the world by the great Soul King, finally tapped into their true form as the most beautiful eagle wings inherited from their mother grew from their slender forms as they came into full completion.

The brothers collapsed atop of one another as they panted heavily, their bodies not returning to their human form so that they could make sure the link was stable again. Ichigo was the first one to come down from his high and shook his brother off of his back and tumbled out of the bed, getting up on four shaky limbs.

When Ichigo looked at his new appendages tears ran from his eyes as he closed them with a look full of sorrow on his face.

"Mom," he sobbed loudly, his wings fluttering in distress as he felt like the very soul of his mother filled his being, her warmth embracing his battered and bruised heart for the first time in so many years.

He let out a mournful whine before he was joined by Shiro who looked just as distressed as he did. The brother's hugged each other tightly, their heads resting across the opposite's shoulder.

"It's like mom's very soul is in our hearts," Ichigo said with a sad voice.

"I know," Shiro agreed.

"But you know, having mom so close makes me feel like I can overcome just about anything," Ichigo said.

"You're right, I feel as if I've finally become the one I was always meant to be," Shiro said, his usual way of speaking cast away for a moment.

They really didn't need to voice their feelings, with their link back in place they could easily feel each other as if they lived in the other's body and they smiled at each other before letting their noses touch. Ichigo licked his brother's pink nose before he began transforming back into a human, Shiro doing the same and as soon as they were back standing on to feet they indulged in a very passionate make-out session.

Ichigo went over to his walk in wardrobe and found clean fundoshi's, and then had Shiro tie his before returning the favor. Ichigo then did a few quick hand signs, and the genjutsu barrier fell. Minutes later Grimmjow and Starrk came into the room, Grimmjow immediately approaching Ichigo before halting in his steps, his jaw hanging open in awe.

The aura surrounding the two twins was so menacing that he was frozen in his step. Even as young as they were the two emitted an aura which demanded respect, brought fear and told of knowledge, experience and power. In that very moment Grimmjow didn't feel like he could be the superior of the pair, for a fleeting moment he felt completely helpless and at their mercy and he was stricken with fear. Starrk had the same experience and he shared the look and emotions of his old friend. Grimmjow and Starrk shared a nervous look which did not go unnoticed by the twins. As quick as the intense aura had weighed down on the room, it disappeared completely and Ichigo dragged the both of them into a warm embrace.

"You idiot Ichigo, why didn't you tell me about this. I was searching for you like crazy before your father told me what you were doing," Grimmjow said angrily, his cyan eyes swirling with emotion.

"I'm sorry Grimm, I didn't think to tell you," Ichigo replied with a genuine look of apology in his eyes before he gave Grimmjow a passionate kiss, and Starrk got one as well. Both of the two were surprised when they got the same affectionate kiss from Ichigo's pale copy and they looked at him with wonder.

"Don' look so confused. King feels so strongly fer ya tha I's rubbin off on me as well," Shiro explained a faint tone of blue dusting his face as Shiro blushed for the very first time in his entire life.

The feelings Ichigo held towards the King and the Guard were so strong, and Shiro felt it just as strongly now that their link was mended. Anyone Ichigo loved, he would love just as much. Although he would never admit it, he already had a thing going for the lazy and relaxed guard with the beautiful electric grey eyes and wavy brown hair. At the thought of the wolf Shiro's crotch ached just a tiny bit and he held back a moan. Ichigo looked outside and saw that the sky was dark and he got a look of determination in his face.

"Tomorrow we will retrieve our Zanpakuto, and we shall bring to justice the one who harmed our family and so many others, including Toshiro," Ichigo growled his emotions raw and showing on his emotion was immediately reflected in Shiro's face; even without the soul link they would have still shared the same expression. Grimmjow smiled a sad smile and walked up to his golden gem and embraced him from behind, resting his head on Ichigo's shoulder.

"As much as I want to keep you safe here, I know I couldn't hold you back even if I tried love," Grimmjow said and licked at Ichigo's throat which resulted in Ichigo letting out a low barely audible moan.

"I know Grimm, and I am forever in your and Starrk's debt for allowing me into your home and rescuing my family, I love you both so much," Ichigo declared and smiled when Shiro and Starrk joined their warm embrace.

"Let's go to bed for now and tomorrow we shall protect the holy contract and fulfill the duty which the Soul King bestowed us," Starrk said and nudged them over towards Ichigo's bed.

None of them made any protest and soon they were piled together, sleep easily coming to their eyes as they had their last peaceful sleep for a while, their sleep without dreams as they charged their batteries for the battle to come.

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**So sorry for the wait guy's! Anyways, I hope the twincest in this makes up for it XD I ship IchiShiro, I just love it! Yeah, so the last build up chapter for the coming war. Blood shall rain as the battle axe falls in the next chapter of BMBD, stay tuned folks :D**

**Please review!**


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